


At the Beginning with You

by Cilantro999



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Drama & Romance, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-10
Updated: 2017-04-27
Packaged: 2018-08-21 18:23:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 24,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8255797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cilantro999/pseuds/Cilantro999
Summary: Nozomi Tojo was used to being the new kid in town.  It had happened countless times before.  But this time it was different.  And though change was scary, maybe this time Nozomi would find what she was looking for.





	1. A Strange Journey

Nozomi Tojo shivered slightly in nervousness as she stood in front of her new high school.  She’d just finished moving into the dorms and had had a rough time getting all her stuff from the bus stop at the bottom of the hill up to the top where the dorms were located.  Her parents apologized over the phone for not being able to help her move in, but to be honest Nozomi was already used to it.  Her childhood had been spent moving around from place to place; her parents were essentially workaholics, so they went where their company told them to go with little regard for Nozomi.  It had been Nozomi’s idea to move into the dorms; she couldn’t stand to be in another empty apartment where her parents came only to check to make sure the pipes hadn’t busted.  Hopefully, this would be the last move she would have to go through; well, at least before going to college.

Shaking her head at the negative thoughts, Nozomi headed inside to fill in some last minute paperwork and to figure out which class she was in.  Walking through the empty halls (as classes were still in session), she finally found herself at the Headmaster’s Office.

“Come in,” a voice said inside just as Nozomi was about to knock.  Feeling a little disconcerted at the headmaster’s predictive ability (was there a hidden camera somewhere?), she did as she was bidden.  At the oaken desk sat a woman with long ashen hair.  She gave Nozomi a comforting smile.

“Welcome to Otonokizaka Academy, Nozomi Tojo,” the woman said, “My name is Noriko Minami, and I’m the headmistress of the school.  There are just a few pages for you to sign and then you should be all set for tomorrow.”  Headmistress Minami said a few more things as Nozomi signed the last of the forms.  It took Nozomi a moment to realize the headmistress was looking at her as if waiting for an answer.

“Sorry,” Nozomi stammered, “I didn’t catch your question.”

The other woman gave her a worried smile, “Are you sure you want to transfer here?”

Nozomi looked at the woman with a puzzled expression, “I think so.”  Besides, Otonokizaka was the only school that was willing to take Nozomi at this time of year.

The headmistress seemed to search Nozomi’s eyes before nodding to the girl, “Alright then, make sure to read the information packet before classes tomorrow.  You will be in class 3-A under Mr. Antoine.”  Nozomi nodded and quickly left the room, still puzzled by the headmistress’s apparent hesitation.  Gripping the ‘Welcome!’ packet in her hand a little tighter, Nozomi was about to head back to her room when a body went whirling past her.

“Sorry!” the ginger haired girl shouted over her shoulder as she raced down the hall.  Screeching to a halt as an idea suddenly sprung into her head, the ginger haired girl handed Nozomi something and yelled a quick ‘Thanks!’ before taking off again.  Nozomi didn’t have a chance to look down as what she was now holding as she heard another body racing towards her.

“Honoka, don’t you dare run off!” a girl’s voice yelled.  Nozomi whirled around as she tried to find the source of the voice, only to have the voice shout at her, “Would you please stop moving around so much?  It’s making me very dizzy.”  Belatedly, Nozomi realized the voice was coming from between her hands and looked down.

Only to find she was holding the head of a girl with long blue hair.  Looking up in horror, Nozomi realized the body barreling towards her had no head.  Before her mind could catch up to the events thus far, Nozomi found herself falling as she fainted dead away.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When next Nozomi awoke, she found herself staring at an unfamiliar white ceiling.  Groaning, she shifted to a sitting position and found herself in what appeared to be the school’s infirmary.

“Oh, looks like you’re awake.”

Nozomi jumped a little at the unexpected voice and found herself staring at a girl with bright red hair and lavender eyes.  By the looks of the bow around her neck, she was a first year student.  Suddenly remembering something, Nozomi looked down at her hands in panic, then quickly got off the bed to look around.

“If you’re worried about the dullahan, she’s fine,” the red head answered as she watched Nozomi looking around in a panic, “She managed to catch her head right after you fainted.  But that means that no one was able to catch you, so you might have a slight concussion.  You’d best take the rest of the day off.”

Nozomi paused at the word ‘dullahan,’ but wasn’t able to think about it too much as her body protested the sudden movement.  “Oh, that’s good.  Thank you,” Nozomi said.  Once her mind started settling down, Headmistress Minami’s words surfaced in her mind.  Who, or what was that she saw?  Excusing herself from the infirmary, Nozomi quickly made her way back to the dorm and fell face first into her bed.  Groaning, she rolled onto her back and pulled out the school’s info packet.

 _Otonokizaka Academy.  Home to students of all races, ethnicities, and backgrounds._   It wasn’t until she’d read about halfway through the packet that the words really dawned on her.

Otonokizaka Academy was a school for literally ALL species.  Witches, demons, mythical creatures, you name it.  She vaguely noted that plain old ‘human’ wasn’t really included on the list, though after her experience that day, she wasn’t that nearly so surprised.  While Nozomi was a somewhat spiritual person (her grandparents owned a shrine and she often read tarot cards as a hobby), she never thought that all those mystical creatures from the stories her grandmother told were real.  In all her 17 years, she’d never met one of them until now.

Nozomi sighed as she rubbed the bridge of her nose.  It was all a lot to take in all at once.  What was this school?  Would she even fit in?  She’d been through the process as a transfer student numerous times before, but she didn’t know anything about this world.  Vowing to learn as much as she could the next day, Nozomi quickly fell into a fitful sleep.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hi, I’m Nozomi Tojo,” Nozomi said at her introduction the next day.  Her voice quivered ever so slightly as she looked around the room.  Knowing that most of these people weren’t her standard of ‘normal’ made Nozomi feel quite vulnerable, more so than ever before, “Um, due to my parents’ jobs, we moved to this area, so, I’ll be joining your all’s class.  I hope we can get along.”

“Alright, Tojo-san, thank you for the introduction,” the teacher said, “Why don’t you sit in the empty seat behind Ayase-san?  Ayase-san, would you raise your hand?”  A girl with her bright blond hair tied back in a ponytail slowly raised her hand.  Nozomi gave the girl a friendly smile as she passed her, though that smile faltered when the girl gave her an icy glare with cold blue eyes.  Shutting her mouth to whatever she was going to say, Nozomi practically fell into her chair as classes started.

Thankfully, Nozomi had kept up with her studies, quickly growing bored with the lecture material.  Secretly glancing around, Nozomi tried to guess what everyone was.  The Salamander and the Water Nymph were fairly obvious, among others.  Her eye caught on a small girl in the back with raven hair tied in pigtails.  The girl’s crimson eyes also appeared bored as her eyes wandered.  Nozomi caught a glimpse of what appeared to be horns on the girl’s head when the girl turned to look at her.  Nozomi quickly returned to staring at Ayase-san’s back.  Nozomi wondered what Ayase-san was as an alluring scent wafted her way.

“That will be for this lecture,” the teacher said, breaking the spell over Nozomi.  She shook her head, trying to rid herself of the cobwebs in her mind.  What had happened?

“Hey transfer,” a voice said.  Nozomi turned to see the small twin tailed girl standing by her desk.  Looking closer, the girl indeed had a small pair of horns on her head, though she otherwise looked human, “I’m Nico Yazawa; saw you looking my way during class.”

Nozomi felt her face blush before she gave a low bow, “I’m really sorry, I didn’t mean to stare at you or anything.”

Yazawa-san looked a little flustered, “Oh, no, that’s not what I meant.  I just wanted to talk with you and was wondering if you wanted to grab some lunch together?”

“Um, sure,” Nozomi hesitantly said, happy that the Yazawa-san didn’t seem angry.  The two quickly grabbed something from the school’s cafeteria before settling into an empty space in the courtyard.

The two began their lunch in awkward silence before the Yazawa-san finally spoke up, “Rotten luck for you to get seated near Eli Ayase.”

 _So her first name was Eli,_ Nozomi thought to herself.  To Yazawa-san, she simply replied, “Oh?  Something I should be aware of?”

Yazawa-san looked at Nozomi, then sighed, “I can already tell you’re going to be a handful.  Let’s just say this; if you want a peaceful life, stay away from Ayase.”

Nozomi wanted to press further, but thought better about it.  Yazawa-san was the first student who’d bothered to talk to her and Nozomi didn’t want to annoy the girl just yet, “Yazawa-san.”

“Nico.”

“Nico-san,” Nozomi corrected, “Thanks for the advice; I'll keep that in mind.”  She was going to say more when a trio suddenly came up to them.  Nozomi recognized the ginger haired girl and the blue haired dullahan from yesterday (she was slightly more prepared this time to see the girl holding her head and didn’t faint right then and there).  Though she hadn’t met the third girl before, Nozomi noted the girl’s resemblance to the headmistress.  Except for the added set of feathered wings.

“Are you Nozomi Tojo?” the ginger haired girl asked.  When Nozomi nodded, she was surprised when the girl gave her a low bow, “I’m really sorry about yesterday!  I didn’t mean to scare you or anything.”

It was then Nozomi remembered she’d fainted while holding the blue hair girl’s head, “Oh, no, I should be apologizing.  I didn’t mean to drop your head; are you alright?”

“No need to worry, I’m fine,” the blue haired girl said, “I’m sorry I couldn’t catch you when you fell.  Are you alright?”

“Guys, shouldn’t we be introducing ourselves first?” the ashen haired girl suggested.  Her friends nodded as they realized Nozomi didn’t know how to address them, “Nice to meet you, Tojo-sempai.  My name is Kotori Minami.  These are my friends Honoka Kosaka and Umi Sonoda.  Feel free to call us by our first names.  We’re from class 2-D and I hope we will get along in the future.”  Kotori gestured to the ginger haired girl and blue haired girl respectively before giving another bow.  Her friends followed a heartbeat later.

“It’s nice to meet you all as well, and Nozomi’s fine,” Nozomi replied.  Though she tried not to show it, she didn’t like being called by her last name.  It just served as a reminder of the parents who had left her to fend for herself.  Again, like always.  She quickly pushed those thoughts from her mind.

“Oh, the bell’s going to ring soon,” Honoka said, “We’ll see you around, Nozomi-sempai!”  With that, the three second years were gone.

Nico snickered as they made their way back to class, “Man, how sheltered are you to have fainted when you saw the dullahan?”

“Well, that’s…,” Nozomi stared but didn’t finish as the room suddenly fell silent.  Nozomi looked up to see Ayase-san entering the room, the students scrambling to find their seats.  Ayase-san seemed to ignore everyone around her as she quickly found her own seat, though Nozomi could have sworn Ayase-san had given her a glare just before she sat down.

By the time classes were over, Nozomi was more than ready to head home.  Though the classes themselves weren’t that bad (she especially enjoyed the history lecture), she’d been getting some seriously ominous vibes from the girl in front of her, who promptly got up and rushed out the door as soon as the bell rang.  Nozomi let out the breath she’d been unconsciously holding as Nico came to her desk.

“Yikes, that was worse than usual,” Nico said, glaring in the direction Ayase-san had rushed off to, “You look beat; I know a place that sells some good parfaits if you’re up for it.”  Not having anything else to do other than to go back to the dorms (since she wasn’t in any clubs yet), Nozomi decided to follow Nico to a small café just outside of the school grounds.  As they began to dig into their parfaits (which were indeed very delicious), Nico abruptly asked, “So, what’s a human doing at a school like Otonokizaka?”

Nozomi almost choked on a strawberry.  “What are you talking about?” she asked hastily.

“Come on, it’s pretty obvious,” Nico said, rolling her eyes, “Dullahan’s are pretty common nowadays; I don’t think I’ve met anyone who hasn’t interacted with one in their life.  But you actually fainted when you met Sonoda the first time, at least from what I heard.  Add to the fact that you seem overly interested in the rest of us makes me think you’ve never seen our kind before.  Which means you’d have to be human.”

“Well, maybe I’m just a really sheltered person,” Nozomi stuttered.

Nico rolled her eyes again, “Yeah, I seriously doubt that.  Look, it’s not like I have a problem with you being human or anything.  It’s just that this school isn’t exactly the safest place for a human to be in.”  It was then Nozomi realized that Nico was actually worried for her.

“Thanks, Niccochi,” Nozomi said.  Nico’s head whipped around at the nickname, “Oh, sorry, can I call you Niccochi?”

“It’s fine,” Nico replied, a small blush forming on her face.  The two talked for a little longer then began making their way back.  Nozomi was surprised when Nico parted ways at the school; apparently, not everyone lived in the dorms.  As she entered her room, Nozomi heard the shower running.  While her roommate hadn’t shown up yesterday (at least, not that Nozomi was aware since they had individual bedrooms), it seemed they had come back today.  Steeling herself for an introduction, Nozomi felt her heart freeze and her legs turn into jelly when the girl walked out of the shower.

It was none other than Eli Ayase.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone for reading! This is the first fanfic I've ever written (and the first one on AO3); comments and critiques are welcome!
> 
> I took a few liberties with some of the names (like Principal Minami's first name, since I couldn't figure out if the show had ever mentioned it).


	2. A Dream of Summer

The next morning, Ayase was nowhere to be found.  She was gone before Nozomi woke up, their dorm room as empty as it had been on the first day.  As she stared at the empty seat in front of her, Nozomi couldn’t help but wonder if it was somehow her fault.

“You’re overthinking things,” Nico said during lunch when Nozomi confided her feelings, “Ayase never got along with anyone.  Why’d you think you’d be different?”

“Thanks, Niccochi,” Nozomi said sarcastically.  She put her chopsticks down, what little appetite she had now gone.

Nico looked at Nozomi between bites and sighed, “Alright, that’s it.  Come with me after classes are over.  I want to show you something.”  Nozomi looked at Nico curiously but wasn’t able to get anything else of the petite girl.  The end of the day couldn’t come any quicker as Nozomi impatiently waited for Nico at the lockers.

“Ready?” Nico asked and Nozomi nodded.  Hopping on a shuttle that led into the city, Nozomi soon found herself standing in front of a karaoke bar.

“Niccochi?” Nozomi asked as Nico led her inside.

“What?  Don’t tell me you’ve never done karaoke before?” Nico looked at Nozomi incredulously.

Nozomi shook her head, “It’s not that.  Why are we here?”

Nico looked a little embarrassed, “Well, I know you’ve been wanting to ask some stuff, but it’s kinda hard to talk about in public.  This is the only place I know of where we could talk somewhat privately.  There’s another reason too, but you’ll have to wait for a bit.”

“Niccochi,” Nozomi breathed.

“Don’t get me wrong,” Nico said, turning her head away as she blushed furiously, “I’m expecting you to do the same for me if I go to a human town.  I’m just paying the favor ahead of time.”  Nozomi wasn’t fooled, but she simply smiled and didn’t say anything as they headed inside one of the rooms, “So, what do you want to know?”

Nozomi hesitated; there were so many questions she wanted to ask now that she had the opportunity.  She settled on the first one to come to mind, “What are you exactly?”

Nico’s eyes went wide before she burst out laughing, “Straight to it, huh?  Well, to keep it simple, I’m an Oni.”

“Ah, so that’s what the horns were.  But aren’t you a little small for an Oni?” Nozomi said, before realizing what she was saying and clapping a hand over her mouth.

Nico’s eyes narrowed, “You don’t have to remind me that I’m a shrimp even by human standards.”  Then she sighed and Nozomi wondered if she was going to get mad.  Instead, Nico jumped up and fell into a ‘cutesy’ pose, “Well, that just makes Nico Nico Nii even cuter!”  She stuck her tongue out of her mouth for added effect.  Nozomi froze for a split second before she had to clap her hand over her mouth to prevent herself from laughing outright.  Nico looked slightly offended as she sat back down.

“So,” Nozomi finally said, changing the subject to prevent herself from laughing even more, “What other types are out there?”  Nico proudly puffed out her chest as she began to explain the various races.  Nozomi was surprised when Nico told her most of them looked very close to humans.  It had something to do with how the races evolved from a distance ancestor of humans, but the technical lingo was a little too much for Nozomi to handle.

The two got to talking about the three second years from yesterday.  Honoka was a werewolf, the kind that would transform during a full moon (though she had superhuman strength pretty much at all times).  Umi was a dullahan, cousin to the Headless Horsemen (who were actually born without heads), and Kotori was a tengu.

“Wait, then what about Headmistress Minami?” Nozomi asked, “Are she and Kotori-chan related?  And what about her wings?”

“Kotori is the headmistress’s daughter,” Nico replied, “But about the headmistress’s wings, I can’t say for sure.  Some older people can use magic to hide themselves or make themselves look more like humans.  On a slightly darker note, though, some also have had a bad run in with humans.”

Nozomi looked concerned, “You don’t mean…?”

Nico nodded, “I’ve heard stories of some people who got attacked by humans or kidnapped for research.  But then again, I’ve only heard stories.  I haven’t actually met anyone who’s been in that type of situation.”

Nozomi shuttered at the thought, though she wasn’t actually surprised that something like that might have happened.  Humans were a selfish bunch.  She wondered if something like that had happened to Ayase.  If Nozomi really was as transparent as Nico said, Ayase had definitely picked up on the fact that Nozomi was human.  And if she’d had a bad experience with humans before, then Nozomi could see how Ayase had difficulty being around her.  Before Nozomi could continue that thought, she heard the sound of someone singing in the neighboring room.

“Nice, looks like it’s your lucky day,” Nico said, grinning.  Nozomi looked between Nico and the wall where the voice was coming from.  It was a haunting melody that spoke of heartbreak; Nozomi had never heard a more beautiful song.  Nozomi felt tears coming to her eyes as the song drew to a close.

“Alright, let’s go,” Nico said, getting up from her seat.  When Nozomi looked at her in puzzlement, Nico simply replied, “Well, don’t you want to meet the owner of that lovely voice?” Before her mind had properly caught up, Nozomi found herself following Nico outside as two girls exited their respective room.

“Hey Hanayo, Rin!” Nico called out.  The one with short brown hair and square glasses jumped, though the other girl with short orange hair continued to walk and talk seemingly to herself.

“Rin-chan,” the bespectacled girl whispered, but the orange haired girl continued onward.  “Rin-chan,” the girl said a little louder.  When she was ignored once again, the girl took a deep breath.

“Crap!” Nico yelled, clamping her hands over her ears.

“RIN-CHAN!!” the bespectacled girl shouted.  Nozomi’s vision momentarily went black as the sound reverberated around her.  The walls groaned and shifted as they were bombarded by a series of sound waves.  When everything had subsided, the walls had a few more cracks in it than Nozomi remembered.

The orange haired girl whirled as she finally heard her friend.  When Nico gestured to her ears, the orange haired girl finally remembered something and removed a set of ear plugs, “Whoa, Kayo-chin, what’s wrong?”

“Nico-chan called us,” the bespectacled girl whispered, pointing to Nico who’d finally risen from her crouched position and Nozomi who was currently swaying as she tried to ignore the ringing in her ears.

“Nico-chan!” the orange haired girl exclaimed.  It was then Nozomi realized the girl had a pair of cat ears on top of her head, as well as a pair of tails swinging around behind her, “What’s up, nya?”

Nico smiled, though she looked first at Nozomi worriedly, “It wasn’t super important, I just wanted to introduce our new transfer student.  You okay, Nozomi?”

Nozomi nodded, finally able to get past the ringing in her ears, “Yeah, I’m fine.”  She then turned to the two girls and smiled, “Hi, I’m Nozomi Tojo.  I just recently transferred to Otonokizaka as a third year student.  I hope we can get along.”

“Oh, it’s the human!” the orange haired girl exclaimed and Nozomi felt her smile twitch.  Is that all that everyone thought of her?

“Rin-chan!” the bespectacled girl cried, speaking in a more normal tone.  Bowing low to Nozomi, the bespectacled girl apologized, “I’m sorry, Tojo-sempai.  She didn’t mean any harm by it.  I’m Hanayo Koizumi and this is my friend Rin Hoshizora.  We’re first years at Otonokizaka.  I’m sorry again for her behavior.”

“Ah, it’s okay,” Nozomi quickly reassured, “And Nozomi’s fine, you don’t need to be so formal.”

“So, where are you from?” Hoshizora-san asked excitedly.

“Here and there,” Nozomi answered somewhat vaguely, “I’ve lived pretty much all over Japan because of my parents’ jobs.”

“Oh,” Koizumi-san said, not sure what to say as she saw a fleeting sadness flit across Nozomi’s face before Nozomi’s face fell back into a smile.

Nozomi looked excitedly at Rin, “But I have to say, that was some beautiful singing!  You could probably go pro if you wanted.”

Nico tried not to laugh as Rin looked at Nozomi in confusion, “Huh?  I wasn’t singing.”

“Eh?” Nozomi exclaimed, looking at Hanayo.

Nico finally lost it, “Ha ha ha!  You thought that was Rin?  These walls are supposed to be soundproof.  Well, relatively speaking so that neighboring rooms won’t bother each other.  The only one with the power to overcome them would be a Siren.”

“As in the mythical Greek creatures who sang and led men to their deaths?” Nozomi asked.

“Okay, first the Sirens never killed anyone,” Nico started lecturing Nozomi, “At least not intentionally.  Those idiots were stupid enough to think that they could capture the women without there being any consequences.  When they tried to capture the women, many of the men slipped on the rocks and fell to their deaths, then blamed it on the Sirens.  Second, who are you calling mythical creatures?  We’re people just like you.”

“Oh, right,” Nozomi said, abashed, “Sorry, Koizumi-san.”

Koizumi-san shook her head vigorously, “IT’S OKAY!”  She stopped when she realized the others were gripping their ears, “I’m sorry.”

“Hanayo has some trouble controlling the strength of her voice,” Nico explained, “One of the downside of being a Siren.  That’s why she often comes here to practice.  And everyone loves her singing, so it’s a win-win for all.  Except for maybe the walls.”

“I see,” Nozomi said, smiling at Hanayo, “I hope you’ll let me hear you sing again sometime.”

“Of course!” Hanayo said excitedly, “And please, call me Hanayo.  You can call Rin-chan ‘Rin’ as well.”

When Rin nodded excitedly, Nozomi’s smile grew wider, “Will do, Rin-chan, Hanayo-chan!”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the two third years waved goodbye to the first years, Nozomi said, “Thanks, Niccochi.”

Nico smiled knowingly, “Well, what did you expect from the great Nico Nii?”  Then, her smile softened, “Starting to get used to things?”

“Yeah,” Nozomi replied, “And if not, I know who I can turn to.”

Nico blushed and stammered a ‘sure’ as they boarded the bus home.  Neither of them noticed a pair of ice cold eyes following them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who has read this chapter! Comments and critiques are always welcome.


	3. Fading Hearts

“Good morning, Ayase-san,” Nozomi said.  Ayase gave a grunt in response, but did not otherwise reply.  For some reason, Ayase’s presence in class made Nozomi feel slightly more relieved, even if she had to suffer Ayase’s stony expressions as she took her seat.  Nozomi didn’t let it get to her; she’d decided to at least be polite to all her classmates (including Ayase) even if her only friend in class was Nico.  Besides, she had made plans to meet up with Nico, Hanayo, and Rin afterschool.  Nothing was going to get in the way of her good mood, not even her least favorite class: PE.

“Why are you in such a chipper mood?” Nico groaned as they changed into their PE clothes.  They would be playing volleyball that day, the class already split into two teams.  Nozomi was relieved to find that she was on the same team as Nico and opposite the team of Ayase.

“Just because,” Nozomi answered cryptically, though really just for the heck of it.  She knew Nico was also excited about their get together after school.

Nico sighed, “Well, just keep your head in the game.”

Nozomi raised an eyebrow and grinned, “I didn’t know you were so fired up to win.”

“Not that, idiot,” Nico growled, “You can’t underestimate the other kids; you’re human, they aren’t.  If you aren’t careful, you could literally go SPLAT.”  Nozomi’s smile fell as she realized the gravity of her situation.  So far, their PE class had only been doing individual activities, such as running and jumping.  Though she was always dead last, she could more or less get by.  This would be the first time she participated in a team activity here.  She would have to be careful not to get in the others’ way.

Once the game started, though, she thankfully had little to do.  The other players were much more athletic than her, keeping the ball in the game with lightning fast reflexes.  To be honest, it was probably safer for her if she stood in the same place; there was a smaller chance of her getting hit by a stray ball, or get run over by a stray person.  All she had to do was act like an obstacle.

Soon, it was Nozomi’s turn to serve.  She grimaced a little when she got the ball; the last time she’d played, she ended up spraining her wrist when she tried to serve.  Well, if she couldn’t get it over the net, the ball would just go to the other team, so there wasn’t anything really to worry about.  Sighing, she started to toss the ball up to serve.

And felt a chill run up her spine.

Nozomi fumbled, dropping the ball before she could even hit it.  Startled, she tried to look around to find the source, but couldn’t readily see anything.  She was surprised to see Ayase doing the same.  Was there something out there?  Obviously freaked out, Nozomi whimpered when she was given the ball again.

“You can do it, Nozomi!” Nico cheered.  The other students were rather surprised by her outburst, though no more than Nozomi herself.  Nico gave Nozomi a thumbs up, bolstering her confidence even though Nozomi was still uneasy about the chill she felt.  The second serve went over but was quickly returned, giving a point for the opposing team.  After the team rotation, Ayase stepped into the server position. 

Glancing up at the clock, Nozomi breathed a sigh of relief; just a few more minutes and PE would be over.  Unfortunately, that sigh came too soon as Nozomi heard Nico shout in alarm.  Turning back to see what was up, Nozomi had just enough time to register a growing white thing as the ball slammed square into her face.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Fear gripped Nozomi’s heart as she raced down unknown alleyways.  She dared not look back at the thing that was chasing her, knowing that if she looked back her hesitation was all the thing needed to catch up to her.  As she tried to round a corner, her feet slipped out from under her and she fell hard on the ground.  She tried to get back up but her body refused to move, paralyzed by the fear.  Looking behind her, Nozomi felt cold blue eyes draw near…_

As she fell from the infirmary bed, Nozomi bit back a yelp as her body protested the sudden fall.

“Whoa, are you alright?” a voice exclaimed.  Nozomi looked up to see the same red head from her first day at Otonokizaka.  As Nozomi slowly sat up, she noticed the girl suddenly turning away while grasping her nose.  When Nozomi looked down, she realized she had a surprising amount of blood on her shirt.  Startled, she began checking her body.

“You were pretty banged up when Eli brought you here,” the red head explained, her voice a little nasally from holding her nose, “Something about being smashed by a ball in gym class.  Thankfully, the nurse was able to fix you up.  You’ll be sore for a while, but at least you’re alive.”

Nozomi got up from the floor, wincing as her body protested once again, “Thank you.  It’s kind of embarrassing that this is the second time you’ve seen me like this.”

The red head shook her head, “Well, you can’t help it since you’re human.”

Nozomi sighed, rubbing her head, “Is it really such a big deal?”

The red head shrugged, “Most of us haven’t every interacted with a human before, so yeah.”

“Oh,” Nozomi said, at a loss for words, “Wait, Ayase brought me here?”

Before the red head could answer, Nico took that moment to enter the infirmary, “Oh, Nozomi!  You okay?  The vampire didn’t do anything to you?”  Nozomi looked between Nico and the red head in surprise, question momentarily forgotten.  No wonder the red head had a hard time looking at Nozomi.

“Huh?” the red head growled, irritation creeping into her voice, “Why would I want to have anything to do with a pathetic human?  They’re way too delicate.”  That comment stung a little; and here Nozomi thought they were getting along.  Nozomi was having a hard time figuring out the red headed vampire.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Nico said, waving away the red head’s outburst.  Turning to Nozomi, she held out Nozomi’s school uniform, “Here, I brought these for you to change into.  It’d be best if you didn’t go walking around the school with blood all over you.”

Nozomi nodded in understanding.  In any case, she wasn’t really interested in looking like she’d just had her throat ripped out (or face smashed in, for that matter).  She sighed as she thought about what to do with the clothes; she would probably have to just throw them out.  Stepping from behind the curtain, Nozomi was surprised when the red head handed her a plastic bag.

“So you don’t walk around with them out,” the red head said.  Nozomi saw the girl’s nostrils flare as the scent of blood wafted her way, though at the same time she looked like she was about to become sick.

“Are you okay?” Nozomi asked, walking up to touch the red head’s forehead.

“Don’t touch me!” the red head cried, slapping Nozomi’s hand away.  Breathing heavily, the red head took several steps back, “I can still smell the blood on you, and it’s doing nothing to help my self-control.  When you’re lying there practically half dead, it’s one thing; however, now that you’re awake, it’s taking practically everything in me to not bite you.  Whatever common courtesy or whatever you humans do, I suggest you throw that out the window.  It will only get you hurt.”

“Hey, Maki, what’s with the attitude?” Nico growled, “She was only trying to help.”

“And I’m saying that her ‘help’ is not helping anyone,” the red head retorted, “And you aren’t doing any good if you keep babying her.  If that’s how humans are, it’s no wonder Eli doesn’t want to have anything to do with humans.”  Nico’s eyes grew murderous, but before she could do anything, Nozomi tugged on her sleeve.  When Nico turned to berate Nozomi, the words died in her throat when she saw Nozomi on the verge of tears. 

Taking a deep breath, Nozomi bowed low to the red head, “Thank you for keeping an eye on me while I was out.  I’ll try not to bother you in the future.”  With that, Nozomi ran out of the infirmary, Nico following shortly afterwards.

Nozomi continued to walk back to the dorms with a heavy heart and Nico was at a loss at what to say.  Finally, Nico broke the silence that had fallen between them, “Don’t let it get to you.  Maki can be pretty blunt, but she didn’t mean any harm.”

“I know,” Nozomi replied, “Besides, it was partially my fault.  I keep forgetting where I am.  What I am.”  Nozomi shook her head and hurried on ahead, “Sorry Nico, I’m heading back to the dorms.  Could you apologize to Hanayo-chan and Rin-chan for me?”  Ignoring Nico’s protests, Nozomi quickly rushed back to her room.  Throwing herself to her bed, Nozomi buried her face in her pillow as frustrated tears began to fall.

The red head’s words had stung, but that wasn’t the only reason for her tears.  The new environment and unfamiliar customs; everything seemed to just catch up to her all at once.  Never before had she felt so isolated, even with people like Nico, Hanayo, and Rin around her.  After all, how much did she really know about those three?  Her only solace was that Ayase didn’t seem to be that cold and unfeeling to help someone in need.  Even if it was a human she hated.

On top of that, her nightmare had suddenly decided to surface once again.  She thought she’d finally put it behind her.

She was running, always running from the thing behind her.  Her parents said it stemmed from an incident when she was little, though her memories from that time were a little hazy.  Doctors said it was due to the trauma, and that it was possible she would remember more as time went on.  But all she could ever remember was the fear; that bone chilling fear.

But now that Nozomi thought about it, this was the first time she’d seen something of the creature chasing her.  Ice cold blue eyes that reminded her of Ayase’s… 

Nozomi shook her head.  It was probably due to their close proximity to each other; Nozomi had been thinking about the blond quite a bit these days.  Likely, Nozomi’s current memories were mixing with her nightmare.  There was no way Ayase was the creature from back then.  Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise you, this is an Eli x Nozomi story; we just haven't gotten there yet.


	4. Change of Pace

Nozomi was pretty sure Ayase hated her.

As soon as classes were over, Ayase was the first one to leave the room.  While others in the class seemed to feel more relieved when Ayase wasn’t there, Nozomi couldn’t help but feel a sinking feeling every time the other girl abruptly left without a word.  Nozomi had heard from Nico that Ayase was the student council president, and while it wasn’t uncommon for those with club duties to leave for their afterschool activities, it seemed Ayase left even on days where there shouldn’t have been student council work.  Nozomi could only come to one conclusion: Ayase was purposefully avoiding Nozomi.  Nozomi couldn’t think of why Ayase would need to go through so much length to do so, though. 

In addition to her fears about Ayase, Nozomi’s nightmare had come back in full force, keeping her up most nights.  When she could fall asleep, she promptly woke up, a scream lodged in her throat.  It had gotten to the point that even Nico and the other girls had noticed.

“You don’t look so good,” Nico said one day as she, Nozomi, Hanayo, and Rin were in one of the karaoke rooms.  The four had decided to make an unofficial club for exchanging information about humans and non-humans to satisfy curiosity on both sides.  They agreed to meet in the karaoke bar for a little privacy.

Nozomi gave a tired smile, “It’s nothing.  I just haven’t been sleeping well.”

“That’s not good, nya,” Rin said looking concerned, “Is something wrong?”

“Don’t tell me it has something to do with that bonehead,” Nico huffed.

Nozomi shook her head, though it might have partially been the case, “No!  I’ve just been having this reoccurring nightmare.  It’s nothing serious; I’ve had it since I was a kid.  I thought it had gone away, but it looks like it’s coming back.”

“Nightmare?” Hanayo asked, then clapped a hand over her mouth.

Nozomi smiled, “It’s okay, it’s really nothing serious.  I’m being chased by something.  That’s basically it.”

“That’s pretty generic, even if it’s also terrifying.  Do you ever see the thing chasing you?” Nico asked.

Nozomi shook her head, “Not really.  Just darkness.”  She decided against mentioning the cold blue eyes.  Nico would just complain about how Nozomi seemed to be obsessing over Ayase.  And while Nozomi wanted to deny that, she couldn’t help but admit her thoughts too often turned to the blond girl.  Her head understood that Ayase was dangerous, but her heart was saying there had to be more to the story. 

“Oh, that doesn’t give us much to go on,” Hanayo said, breaking Nozomi’s thoughts, “If we knew what was chasing you, it might give us a clue on how to stop the nightmares.”

“Thanks, Hanayo-chan,” Nozomi said.  She wasn’t quite ready to tell them about the past she couldn’t remember, but felt better that she had friends who would be willing to listen to her when she was ready, “Really though, you don’t need to worry about it.  Besides, didn’t I promise I would do a reading for you all?”  Nozomi reached into her bag to pull out a small wooden box.  The others gave excited gasps, Nozomi’s nightmares all but forgotten.

Nozomi shuffled the well-worn tarot cards in her hand; they were a gift from her grandmother when she lived with her grandparents several years ago.  Finished shuffling the cards, Nozomi decided to do a simplified reading, using only the major arcana, “Who wants to go first?”  Nico and Rin looked at Hanayo, who jumped a little at suddenly being the center of attention, “Alright Hanayo, focus on a question you would like answered, but don’t say it out loud.  What I want you to do is choose a card from anywhere in the deck.  Flip the card over and I’ll tell you what the card means.  How you will interpret the results will be up to you.  Remember, the cards can only guide you to an answer; they cannot tell you what to do.”  Hanayo nodded as the others watched with bated breaths.  Running her hands along the deck, Hanayo chose something from the middle.

“Star, in the upright position,” Nozomi said after Hanayo flipped over her card, “The Star in the upright position represents peace, harmony, hope, and healing.  Let go of any feelings of self-doubt and fear.  A positive outlook is very important for a fulfilling life.”  The others traded looks of excitement as Nozomi shuffled the deck once again.  Rin pulled out an upright Chariot, while Nico pulled out the reversed Lovers.  Nozomi couldn’t help but think about the relationship between Nico and the red head.

Nozomi was about to put her cards away when Rin exclaimed, “Wait, Nozomi-chan!  You didn’t do a reading for yourself.”

“Ah, that’s okay,” Nozomi started, but was quickly cut off by Nico.

“Rin’s right.  Besides, you saw our fortunes, we want to see yours,” Nico said.

Nozomi sighed, then smiled as she shuffled the cards one last time, “Alright, here goes.”  Choosing to take the card from the top of the stack, she quickly settled on the first question that came to mind.

_How can I get along with Eli Ayase better?_

Flipping over the card, Nozomi felt her heart sink just like every time she came across that particular card.

Death.  In the reversed position.

“Nozomi-chan, don’t die!” Rin cried, lunging at Nozomi as if a hug would protect her.

“Ah, don’t worry!” Nozomi quickly reassured as she composed herself, “Death doesn’t always mean literal death.  In the reversed position, it can mean a refusal to change the status quo.  A new chapter cannot occur if the old chapter hasn’t closed.  If I want to change my situation, I can’t be afraid to start over again.”  Nozomi looked at the card in her hand.  Something had to change, huh?  She’d been hesitating for so long; maybe it really was time she actually did something about her situation with Ayase.

Parting ways with the others, Nozomi headed back to her dorm room.  However, instead of heading straight back to her bedroom like she normally would, Nozomi decided instead to sit at the table in the common area of hers and Ayase’s suite.  After all, it was her suite as well; she might as well start by being less afraid in her own living quarters.

Nozomi was working on homework when Ayase returned.  Though she pretended to ignore Ayase, Nozomi saw Ayase’s eyes grow wide with surprise before shuffling back to her own room.  Nozomi let out the breath she’d been unconsciously holding and looked at her phone.  It read 10:45pm; did student council really run for so long?”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Every day Nozomi did something a little different, saying things like ‘Good morning’ once again until she was back to her situation before the unfortunate PE incident.  But remembering the card she drew, Death in the reversed position, Nozomi wanted to do more.  First order of business, of course, was to gather information.

Nozomi wasn’t stupid, though.  She’d quickly noticed that few people wanted to have anything to do with Ayase.  Nozomi doubted any of them could give her anything she didn’t already know.  Nico wouldn’t likely be much help either, and neither Hanayo nor Rin were in her year.  Her thoughts turned to the first year red head from the infirmary, whom she’d recently found out was Maki Nishikino from Nico.  Nishikino-san had been the first that Nozomi remembered who casually used Ayase’s first name. 

Nozomi found herself standing in front of the infirmary one day after classes were over.  As she reached for the door handle, she hesitated. She couldn’t forget the incident in the infirmary just after the PE episode.  Would Nishikino-san even be willing to talk to her?

“Hey,” a voice called out behind her and Nozomi jumped in surprise.  Whirling around, she found herself face-to-face with Nishikino-san herself, “Don’t tell me you hurt yourself again?”

“Ah, no, that’s not it,” Nozomi stumbled over her words.  Now that Nishikino-san was standing there, the words Nozomi had been meaning to day died in her throat.

“Um, okay,” Nishikino-san began, twirling a strand of hair with her finger.  An awkward silence fell between the two of them, before Nishikino-san broke it, “Sorry, about last time.  What I said was out of line.”

Nozomi looked at the younger girl in surprise, before shaking her head, “No, you were right.  I was more or less being nosy, trying to help you without really understanding how my actions might affect you.  So I thought I’d start over again, and try to get to know you better first.  Would you be okay with that, Nishikino-san?”

“Maki’s fine,” Maki replied, twirling her hair faster, “It’s weird for a sempai to call me by my last name.”  She stopped twirling her hair, then stared hard at Nozomi, “You know, that approach isn’t going to work with Eli.”

“Ah,” Nozomi gasped, almost forgetting her original purpose, then getting embarrassed that Maki had so quickly figured it out.  A second later, Maki burst out laughing at Nozomi’s expression.

“You really are a weird one,” Maki said when she finally calmed down, “No wonder Rin and Hanayo like you so much.”

Nozomi’s eyes grew wide, “You know Hanayo-chan and Rin-chan?”

Maki nodded, “We’re in the same class together.  They’ve been talking practically nonstop about you recently.”  Nozomi blushed at the comment, “So, what do you want to know?”  Nozomi felt a sense of déjà vu when she remembered Nico had asked her the exact same question in practically the exact same way.  Now, it was Nozomi’s turn to laugh, “What’s so funny?”

“Sorry!” Nozomi giggled, “You just reminded me of Niccochi for a moment.”

“Nico-chan?” Maki looked offended, “I’m nothing like that dwarf Oni.”  Though her words were harsh, Nozomi couldn’t hear any real venom behind them.  She really was starting to wonder what their relationship was.

“Alright, then tell me about you and Nico,” Nozomi asked.  To her, it seemed like the two were more than friends, though less than…well…

“We grew up together,” Maki replied, back to twirling her hair as a light blush dusted her face.  Yep, definitely something in between, “We used to play together all the time, but we haven’t for a while now.”

Nozomi gave a contemplating look, “Huh, you don’t say?  What about Ayase-san?”

Maki’s embarrassment turned into a knowing grin, “Ah ha, so now we get to the meat of the matter.”

“It’s not that!” Nozomi exclaimed, trying to backpedal until she realized Maki was just teasing her.  Even so, Nozomi decided to come clean, “Well, it’s just that, you’re the only one I’ve heard call her by her first name.”

Maki shrugged, “It’s not a big deal really.  I started calling her that because it’s shorter than calling her ‘Ayase-san’ all the time.  Besides, she doesn’t seemed to be bothered by being called by her first name.”

“Really?” Nozomi said, waiting for more.  When no more was forthcoming, she exclaimed, “That’s it?

“Well, I guess our families know each other,” Maki admitted, “But honestly, the first time I saw her was at the entrance ceremony here at Otonokizaka.  She was pretty uptight and polite back then, but I don’t recall her being quite so prickly until after you showed up.”

“Oh,” Nozomi said, heart sinking.  Was it really her fault for Ayase’s recent behavior?

Maki sighed, “Look, it’s just a rumor I heard, so take it with a grain of salt.  Eli doesn’t get along with humans in general, and it’s likely due to something that happened when she was a child.  I doubt it's directly related to you.  If you want to know more, you’ll have to ask her yourself.”

Nozomi thought about it for a moment before nodding, “Thanks, Maki-chan.”  Maki was right; if she wanted to know more, she would just have to get it from the horse’s mouth, so to speak. 

Maki blushed at hearing her name, then gestured to the door behind Nozomi, “Mind if I grab something from in there real quick?  I’ll walk you to the karaoke bar.”  Nozomi looked at Maki in surprise, “You’re meeting up with Rin and Hanayo, right?  I was headed there to meet them as well, so we might as well go together.”  Nozomi burst out in a smile and nodded happily.  They’re meeting that afternoon was much livelier with the added Maki and by the time Nozomi returned to her dorm room, she felt a renewed sense of purpose in changing her status with Ayase.

Working at the table in the common area once again, Nozomi looked up when Ayase came in through the door.

“Good evening, Eli-san,” Nozomi said, freezing as she realized she’d said that out loud.

Ayase seemed to freeze as well, staring at Nozomi like a deer in headlights.  Nozomi waited with bated breath, bracing herself for a possible backlash.  To her surprise, Ayase simply said, “Good evening, Tojo-san,” before quickly shutting herself in her room like all the previous nights.

Nozomi gasped as she finally remembered to breathe.  That was the first time Ayase, no Eli, had spoken to her.  She smiled as she put away her homework and headed into the shower.  That night, Nozomi had the most peaceful, dreamless sleep in days.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now that we've officially met all the characters, the next chapter should be the one everyone has been waiting for! Comments and critiques welcome as always.


	5. Fortune Arterial

Though Nozomi and Eli didn’t say more than ‘good morning’ or ‘good evening’ to each other, the air between them seemed much less tense than before.  Nozomi felt a little uncertain about Eli, Nozomi also began to feel a sense of curiosity.  Every night without fail Eli would come back to the dorms late in the evening, sometimes even close to midnight.  What was Eli doing between the end of classes and when she got back to the dorms?

“Oh no, I know that glint in your eyes,” Nico said one day while they were eating lunch outside.

“What, I haven’t said anything!” Nozomi protested.

Nico gave Nozomi a sarcastic look, “It’s written all over your face.  You might be getting along better with Ayase now, but I wouldn’t push your luck.”

Nozomi patted Nico’s head, partly as a distraction, “Don’t worry, Niccochi!  I’m not planning on doing anything dangerous.”

“Stop that,” Nico grumbled, swatting Nozomi’s hand.  Then she sighed, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.  Just be careful.”  Nozomi gave an innocent smile as they headed back to their seats.  Eli soon returned as well from lunch, though Nozomi noticed that Eli seemed more tired than normal (no one else seemed to notice, or if they did they pretended otherwise).

Just like before, once classes were over Eli quickly got up from her seat and promptly headed out of the classroom.  Getting ready to head out herself, Nozomi noticed that Eli had left behind her notebook.  While Nozomi could bring it back to the dorms with her and return it to Eli then, this would be the perfect excuse to strike up a conversation with the other girl.

Making her way down the now familiar hallways, Nozomi was outside the student council room before she realized that Eli might not be there since it wasn’t an official student council day.  Sighing, she was just about to head back when she heard a noise inside.  Curious, Nozomi knocked lightly on the door, and to her surprise and alarm the door swung open under hand.

“Pardon me,” Nozomi squeaked as she poked her head in.  At first, the room appeared to be completely empty, save for the stack of papers at the furthest desk.  But as Nozomi stared closer, her eyes went wide as she saw a familiar blond laying on the floor.

“Eli!” Nozomi shouted, rushing to the blond girl’s side.  Eli looked rather pale as she lay breathing shallowly on the floor.  Nozomi went to feel Eli’s forehead, but as soon as she touched the other girl Nozomi felt the energy drain from her body and she blacked out.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Tojo-san,”

Nozomi groaned, slowly opening her eyes, “Huh?”  As her vision slowly cleared, she found herself staring at an unfamiliar ceiling.  She inwardly sighed; this sort of thing was happening more frequently than she liked.  Suddenly remembering, Nozomi shot up on the bed and regretted the decision almost immediately as her vision began to spin.

“Easy now,” a voice said.  Nozomi turned in surprise to see Eli offering her a glass of water, “How are you feeling?”

“A little dizzy,” Nozomi admitted.  However, after a few sips of water, her head felt much clearer.  Clear enough to realize who she was actually talking to.  She was almost a little disappointed at how…normal their first conversation was.

Eli seemingly sighed with relief, “Thank goodness.”  Nozomi looked around and noticed she was in her bed in the dorms.  When Nozomi looked at Eli questioningly, Eli began to explain, “I brought you here after you collapsed.  Or, I should say, made you collapse.”

“Made me collapse?” Nozomi asked.

“You still haven’t figured it out?  The type of demon I am?” Eli asked bitterly, refusing to meet Nozomi’s eyes, “I’m a succubus.”  Nozomi blinked owlishly at Eli.  That wasn’t quite what Nozomi was expecting.  To be honest though, she was more surprised by how Eli described herself.  Demon?  Nico had gotten mad at Nozomi for calling Hanayo a ‘mythical creature.’  Guess Nozomi shouldn’t have been so surprised there were there some people out there who weren’t comfortable with their heritage.  “You don’t believe me, do you?” Eli asked.

Nozomi shook her head vigorously, broken out of her thoughts, “It’s not that!  I was just trying to process what you just said.”

Eli sighed, “You can’t believe everything you hear about.  Unlike popular culture, succubi gather energy through contact; the more skin touching, the easier it is to absorb energy, though we can consciously control the speed or amount of absorption.  The act of sex normally allows for the most skin-on-skin contact, thus is what most people remember.”

Realization dawned on Nozomi, “Then, in the classroom…”

Eli hesitated, then nodded, “I accidentally drained you of your energy.  Because I wasn’t consciously controlling it, I ended up taking too much from you all at once.  Luckily, you seem to be recovering rather quickly; most everyone else I accidentally drained were out for a day.”

Now that she thought about it, Nozomi was feeling much better than when she first woke up, “Oh.”  As soon as the word left Nozomi’s mouth, she winced.  Wasn’t there anything better she could say?

Eli rose from her crouched position, “I’ll talk to Headmistress Minami first thing in the morning to get our rooms reassigned.”

“Wait, why?” Nozomi said, instinctively grabbing Eli’s hand as the other girl turned to walk away.  This time, she did not feel that sudden dizziness like before.

Eli stiffened, refusing to look at Nozomi, “Please let me go.”

Nozomi shook her head, “Not unless you reconsider.”

“Why?” Eli demanded, “I almost killed you!”

“But you didn’t,” Nozomi countered, getting off of the bed to face Eli, “I’m still alive, aren’t I?”

“And what about next time?” Eli shouted, tears forming in her eyes, “What happens when I lose control again?”

“Then I’ll help you,” Nozomi said calmly.  She inwardly held her breath, remembering what Maki had told her before.  Would Eli even want Nozomi’s help, what little she could possibly give?

“Eh?” Eli said, looking up at Nozomi.  It was obviously not the response Eli was expecting to get.

Nozomi thought Eli’s confused expression was rather adorable, and she gave Eli a gentle smile, “You finally looked at me.”

“Eh?  But…,” Eli stammered, her face flushed, “Aren’t you scared?”

Nozomi thought carefully for a moment, trying to figure out the best way to word her response, “Well, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little worried.  But today was partially my fault; I wasn’t really paying attention.  Besides, I guess I’m just more worried about your health.  I mean, you collapsed today because you haven’t been getting enough energy, right?  If there’s something I can do to help, I want to do so.”  She felt a blush come across her face, “I know I’m not that reliable since I’m a human, but if nothing else we are roommates.”

“But, why?” Eli asked, “I’ve been treating you terribly.”

Nozomi took a deep breath, “Eli-san, can I ask you a question?”  When Eli didn’t interrupt her, Nozomi asked, “Do you hate me?”

“Hate you?” Eli said, “No!  I…that’s not why…”

Nozomi gave her best smile, “Then there’s nothing to worry about.”  She thought again about the rumor Maki had told her about; while there did seem to be some merit in it, there wasn’t any need to dig up the past now.  There would be time for that later once she and Eli got to know each other better. 

When it was obvious that Eli wasn’t going to run away, Nozomi released the hand she’d been holding.  An awkward silence fell between the two of them, and Nozomi scrambled for something else to say, “Is it hard to gather energy?  I noticed you always came back to the dorms really late.”

Eli shook her head, “My family owns a place that essentially serves as a succubi feeding ground; otherwise, I can passively absorb energy if I go to places with high residual energy like amusement parks or the Red Light District, though that’s much less effective.  But student council work has been piling up, and I haven’t had a chance to feed as often as I should.”

“What about the other student council members?” Nozomi asked, “Can’t they help out with work?”

Eli winced, “Actually, there aren’t any other members.  I’m the only one left.”

Nozomi’s eyes grew wide, “Then, you’ve been doing it all by yourself?”  If the student council here had as much work as her previous school, it would be almost impossible for Eli to be able to do everything herself.

Eli shrugged, “It’s not that big of a deal; I’ve gotten used to it.”

“That’s not okay!” Nozomi exclaimed, “You can’t take everything on your own shoulders!”

Eli appeared to be surprised at Nozomi’s outburst, “But, what can I do?  I can’t just force people to help me.”

The proverbial lightbulb went off in Nozomi’s head, “Then let me help.  I helped out some friends at my previous school who were on the student council.  I should be able to quickly pick up what needs to be done.”

Eli looked at Nozomi incredulously, “Why?  Why go out of your way to help me?”

Nozomi shrugged, “I guess I just want to get to know you better.  Besides, I can tell the work is catching up to you, even if you won’t admit it yourself.  You won’t do anyone any good by collapsing before you cross the finish line.”

Eli stared at Nozomi before bursting out into laughter and Nozomi thought that Eli’s laughter was probably the most beautiful sound she’d heard in a long time, “I don’t know if you’re brave or foolish, but I guess I can’t beat you, can I?  Alright then, thank you for the help, Tojo-san.”

Nozomi nodded, offering a hand, “Please call me Nozomi.  I look forward to working with you, Eli-san.”

Eli hesitated, then gingerly grasped Nozomi’s hand, “Likewise, Nozomi-san.”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Alright brats, up and at ‘em,” the prison guard shouted.  A blond man slowly rose, tucking several small packets into his sleeve.  Finding a quite spot in the recreational courtyard, the man waited.  He didn’t have to wait long.

A burly inmate sat down next to him and growled, “You got the goods?”

The blond man nodded, secretly sliding the packets to the other guy, “Take these right before the guards come for the end of recreation.  They should be able to give you the boost you were looking for.”

The burly man grinned, “You just wait.”  Then he was gone to distribute the packets to his network.  The blond man gave a sly smile, pulling out a worn picture of a small girl with blond hair and blue eyes.

“Wait for me Eli Ayase.  I’m coming for you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now everyone has been introduced! Not the reveal most people were probably expecting, but I hope you all still enjoyed it.
> 
> Because of the end of the year and holidays approaching, I may not be able to get the next chapter out as soon as I would like. I'll get it out as soon as I can manage!
> 
> Thanks again for reading! Comments and critiques welcome as always.


	6. School Days

“Could you sort that pile as well?” Eli asked Nozomi, pointing towards a giant stack of papers behind her.

“Sure!” Nozomi replied, though inwardly groaning.  Thought it had only been a week since she’d joined student council, Nozomi was seriously regretting opening her big mouth when she’s said she would help out.  She’d severely underestimated the amount of work the student council had to deal with.

By 6 o’clock when club meetings were officially over, Nozomi was absolutely exhausted.  Lying with her head on the table, she felt something cool against her cheek and looked up to see Eli offering her a soda.

“Thanks for the help,” Eli said as Nozomi gratefully accepted the offered drink, “This is probably a good stopping point.  I need to head out for a bit, so see you back at the dorms.”

“See you later,” Nozomi replied.  Massaging her shoulders, she grabbed her bags along with the soda and walked out of the student council room.  She was surprised to see Nico waiting for her outside.

“I can’t believe you actually joined student council,” Nico muttered, shaking her head, “But I’m even more surprised you’re getting along so well with Ms. Cranky Pants.”

Nozomi tried not to giggle at Nico’s absurd nickname, “Niccochi, that’s not very nice.  Besides, you’d be cranky too if you hadn’t been feeding properly for a month.”

“True,” Nico grudgingly admitted.  Then her eyes narrowed, “You seem to be taking this into stride better than I was expecting.”  Nozomi had confided in Nico about Eli’s identity as a succubus, to which Nico had responded with a look that clearly said ‘you didn’t know that?’

Nozomi shrugged, “I guess it’s different when you know the other side of the story.”  She still had some reservations, but those were slowly fading as she realized how much Eli had been putting herself through in student council.  Maybe Eli was just a little misunderstood.

But before she could go around digging up Eli’s past, Nozomi needed to gather more people to help out with student council.  Even with two of them, they were still very much behind on all the necessary paperwork, “Hey, Niccochi…”

“Uh uh, no way,” Nico immediately replied.

“I haven’t said anything yet!” Nozomi protested.

“I’ve told you before, your face is pretty transparent,” Nico explained patiently, “And to answer your unasked question, no I can’t help you with student council.”

Nozomi pouted, but didn’t push the subject.  It couldn’t be helped; she didn’t want to force Nico to help her out if Nico really didn’t want to.  The two parted ways at the dorms, Nico heading out to grab groceries for her family.  Though Nozomi was the first one back like normal, she was pleasantly surprised when Eli arrived soon after.

“Hi Eli, long time no see!” Nozomi said.  It took Eli a moment to realize Nozomi was teasing her.

“Ha ha, very funny,” Eli said dryly as she placed her bag in her room.  To Nozomi’s greater surprise, Eli walked over to the table where Nozomi was sitting, “Mind if I join you?”

“Not at all!” Nozomi exclaimed happily, moving some of her books to make room for Eli.  As Eli sat down to begin working on her homework, she noticed the titles of some of the books on the table.

“Supernatural Creatures for Dummies, Monsters 101, Advanced Exorcism…,” Eli read out loud.

Nozomi squawked in embarrassment, quickly trying to hide the books, “I got them from the library here!  I thought it’d best to study up so I wouldn’t accidentally offend someone.”

“By using books written by humans?” Eli asked skeptically.  At Nozomi’s abashed expression, Eli’s face softened, “Well, it’s the sentiment that counts.  Is there anything I can help with?”

Nozomi looked up in surprise.  She never would have expected Eli to offer to teach her anything, especially given their very different relationship just a few days ago, “Well, um, tell me more about succubi.”

“Eh?” Eli exclaimed, feeling a blush rise to her face, “I think I told you everything already.”

“Well, what about…,” Nozomi began, asking whatever question came to mind.  Though she didn’t really learn any more than she’d already learned, she was just happy to finally be having a normal conversation with her roommate.

The questions started turning to more personal ones.  “What’s your family like?” Nozomi asked innocently.  Nozomi saw Eli’s expression briefly darken before settling back into a more neutral expression, and Nozomi wondered if she’d just stepped on a delicate topic.

“I have a younger sister named Alisa who’s currently living with our grandparents,” Eli said, though her voice was a little cold.

“Oh, that’s nice!” Nozomi said, deciding to turn to topic to her family instead of pressing on about Eli’s, “I’m an only child and my parents are always traveling around for their jobs.  Sometimes I stayed with my grandparents who owned a shrine, but otherwise it was kind of lonely.  I think I would have been a little happier if I had a younger sister.  Or any sibling, for that matter.” 

Nozomi paused when she looked closer at Eli, “Eli, are you okay?  You’re looking a little pale.”  Nozomi instinctively reached out to check Eli’s forehead, prompting Eli to try and scoot back.  Unfortunately, Eli forgot that she was still sitting in a chair and she started to tip backwards.

“Watch out!” Nozomi shouted.  There was a loud crash as Eli’s chair fell to the ground.

Eli had been so caught up in her thoughts that she didn’t realize she was tipping over until she heard Nozomi shout.  Squeezing her eyes shut, she felt the thump as she hit the ground behind her.  Vaguely noting that the fall hadn’t been quite as hard as she was expecting, Eli opened her eyes.

Only to find Nozomi’s face much too close for comfort.

“S-sorry!” Nozomi exclaimed, trying to push herself a little further away.  When she saw Eli falling, Nozomi had tried to catch the other girl only to trip as she rushed forward.  Despite the pain she was feeling from the chair digging into her hip, Nozomi could feel the blood rush to her face as she realized how close they were.  It seemed Eli had just realized this as well as her face began to flush.

“I-it’s okay,” Eli replied.  After a few more moments of maneuvering, the two stood, both blushing furiously.

“Um, sorry about that,” Nozomi apologized again.

Eli shook her head, her mind not quite caught up to the events that had just occurred, “Um, I, I have to go.”  Eli quickly fled to her room, while Nozomi could only stand there in a state of shock. 

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nozomi had trouble sleeping that night, the scene playing over and over again in her head, and it clearly showed the next day.

“Wow, what happened to you?” Nico asked before classes the next day.

“I-it’s nothing,” Nozomi stammered as her thoughts turned back to that scene for like the 100th time.  They were both girls, and it wasn’t like anything had really happened.  Why was it bothering her so much? 

Nico looked at Nozomi skeptically, but decided not to push it, “So, I’ve been asking around to those I know, and I might have some people who’d be interested in helping out student council.”

“Really?” Nozomi asked, last night temporarily forgotten.

“Really,” Nico replied, “I was honestly surprised they offered, but I guess they were curious about Ayase.  I told them to meet you at the student council room after school.”

“Who are they?” Nozomi asked as classes were about to start.

“Don’t worry, you’ll recognize them!” Nico replied.  It was then that Eli came rushing into the room just as the morning bell rang.  She looked a bit disheveled, which was a huge deal for Eli.  The others stared at her as she took her seat.  Nozomi had left earlier than usual that morning, not sure how to act around the other girl after that incident.  However, she felt relieved when she realized she wasn’t the only one bothered by the incident.

Once classes were over, both Eli and Nozomi began making their way to the student council room.  The walk there was filled with an awkward silence as they couldn’t look at each other without their faces heating up.  They were so distracted that neither noticed the three students standing in front of the student council room. 

“Ah, Nozomi-sempai, Ayase-sempai!” a voice called out.  When Nozomi looked up, her face broke out in a wide smile.

“Honoka-chan, Umi-chan, Kotori-chan!” Nozomi exclaimed, excited now that she knew who the mysterious helpers were, “Did Nico send you?”

“Yes, Nico-sempai said something about how you were looking for some assistance with student council work,” Umi explained, “She sounded pretty desperate, so we thought we would come by to see if there was anything we could do to help.”

Though Eli went to turn down their help, Nozomi gave her an absolutely pathetic pleading look and Eli gave in, “Sorry about that, please come in.”  Eli quickly went about explaining what they needed to do.  Umi quickly picked up the concept, but Honoka was having a bit of difficulty (she was thankfully being helped by Kotori).  By the end of the day, they were almost done with all the piled up paperwork.

“Thank you, everyone,” Eli said, bowing to the other four, “It looks like I might be able to take it a little easier from now on, now that we’ve just about caught up.  I’ll find some way to repay you later.”

“Don’t worry about it!” Honoka cheerfully said, “Besides, aren’t you going to be even busier with the upcoming culture festival?”  Eli’s expression went blank before her eyes suddenly grew wide.

Nozomi looked back between Honoka’s excited expression and Eli’s panicked face, “Culture Festival?”  Honoka promptly went into explaining about the school run festival that was used as an event for students to relax for a little while.  Because it was supposed to run during the weekend, students from other schools would often come to see what was being offered.

“By the look on your face, you forgot about the culture festival, didn’t you Ayase-sempai?” Umi asked, though it sounded more like a statement.

Eli put her head in her hands, “I completely forgot.  We need to start gathering information from each class about what they want to do, and from the clubs who want to participate, and…”

“Whoa calm down,” Nozomi said, “When is the festival supposed to be?”

“At the end of the month,” Kotori replied helpfully.

“So we have a few weeks still,” Nozomi said, thinking to herself, “We should still be able to pull it off.  Honoka-chan, Umi-chan, Kotori-chan, could you help us gather information from the other classes starting tomorrow?  We will talk to the clubs to see what they will need.  It’ll be tight, but I’m pretty sure we’ll manage.  Right, Elichi?”

Eli looked up in surprise, then quickly pulled herself together, “You’re right.  I know I don’t have any right to ask, but please help us out at least until the culture festival is over.”

“Of course!” Honoka replied along with the other two.  The three left the student council room, talking excitedly about the upcoming event and propositions of what they should do.  As Nozomi was getting ready to leave, she felt Eli tug on her shirt and turned to face Eli.

“Thanks,” Eli said, her face beet red, “Some student council president I am.”

Nozomi giggled, “Finally showing your cute side now, huh?  Don’t worry Elichi; we’ll pull through this together.”

“Cute?” Eli muttered under her breath in disbelief.  She couldn’t remember the last time anyone had said that to her and it made her face heat up even more.

Nozomi felt her heart flutter when she saw that embarrassed blush.  Eli was much more expressive now than when Nozomi first me her, and Nozomi found that she liked to tease Eli more and more to see her new expressions.  As she followed Eli back to their room, Nozomi began to wonder what that growing feeling in her chest was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for waiting and Happy New Year (yes, I realize I'm a little late on the uptake)! Just wanted to add a chapter to start fleshing out Nozomi and Eli's relationship with each other. Hopefully I'll be able to keep posting on a regular schedule; we'll see how the year goes.
> 
> Comments and critiques welcome as always.


	7. When the Cicadas Cry

The days quickly flew by as the student council members went about preparing for the culture festival, and Nozomi had little time to ponder her changing feelings.  Honoka was in charge of coordinating with the first years, Kotori with the second years, and Nozomi with the third years, while Umi was in charge of clubs and Eli was in charge overall.  Though many of the students were just as surprised as the student council were about the impending deadline, everyone was very eager and willing to help out.

Soon, it was the day before the big event; many of the students were staying late to help with the last minute preparations.  Nozomi had just finished talking with all the third year representatives as well as those in charge of preparing food for the next day.  She sighed as she took a break on an empty bench.

“There you are.”  Nozomi turned to see Nico walking towards her and gave her a tired smile.

“Hey!  What’s up Niccochi?”

“Nothing much, just thought I haven’t really talked to you in a while,” Nico said, taking a seat next to Nozomi.

“Ah, sorry about that,” Nozomi apologized.

“Don’t be,” Nico responded, “You’re helping out a lot to make this event a real success.  I think this will be the best we’ve ever had, at least as long as I’ve been here.  At any rate, Eli’s a lot easier to talk to now.”  Nico looked at Nozomi knowingly, “I wonder who brought about that change?”  Nozomi shrugged, her thoughts turning to Eli for the first time in a while.

Indeed, Eli had changed significantly since Nozomi came to Otonokizaka.  She smiled more and interacted with her classmates; she’d even made some friends with the others including Nico.  Yet something about the situation made Nozomi feel a little uncomfortable.  Before she could pinpoint it, Nozomi heard her name being called by one of the other students.  Excusing herself to Nico, Nozomi hurried to help with the rest of the preparations.  She was exhausted when she arrived back at the dorms and was surprised to find that Eli had beaten her back.

“Welcome back, Nozomi-san,” Eli said as Nozomi closed the door behind her.

“Thanks,” Nozomi replied, removing her shoes at the door and plopping into a chair, “Man, I’m exhausted.”

Eli giggled, “Well, I think it will be well worth it in the end.  But yes, I have to agree.”

Nozomi looked up as a thought went through her mind, “Are you planning on seeing anything in particular at the festival?”

Eli shook her head, “As student council president, I’m on standby just in case something happens.  I’ll probably go where I’m needed.”

“But doesn’t that mean you won’t be able to enjoy the festival?” Nozomi exclaimed, “It seems like a waste.”

“Well, duty calls,” Eli replied smiling, though that smile had a hint of wistfulness that Nozomi didn’t miss.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day, Nozomi woke bright and early, excited for the day.  Eli had already left to help with the opening of the festival, so Nozomi found herself for the first time in a while walking to school alone.  While Nozomi had seen all the decorations before, she hadn’t been able to really enjoy them in all their splendor.  Banners, posters, and signs decorated the campus and the alluring smell of food wafted her way.  Seeing many unfamiliar faces, Nozomi remembered that the event was open to the public.

“Wow, it certainly looks livelier than last year,” a girl with short brown hair and emerald eyes.  Her friends, a tall girl with long maroon hair and another girl with long orange hair, nodded in agreement.  Nozomi was about to head inside when the shorter girl called out to her, “Are you from this school?”

Nozomi nodded, “Is there something I can help you with?”

“We’re looking for Eli Ayase,” the shorter girl said, “Could you tell us where to find her?”

“Elichi?” Nozomi asked, missing the traded looks between the three girls, “She said she’d be busy helping out with the festival, so she could honestly be anywhere.  I could show you the way to the student council room; if she isn’t walking around, she might be in there.”

“Oh, that’s okay,” the shorter girl replied, “We’ll probably run into her during the festival.  Thanks!” After parting ways from the three, Nozomi walked around admiring the different booths and events.  She especially had fun listening in at the fortune telling booth, though she had to hold herself back from correcting the girl doing the readings.  When lunch came around, Nozomi bought some yakiniku and a drink.  Finding a relatively quiet spot, she began to eat as she continued to watch the festival.

The culture festival here really wasn’t that different in spirit to the ones she remembered from her previous schools.  Granted, she’d only been to a couple; bad timing with her parents jobs meant that Nozomi either left before the culture festival began at her previous school or after it had been held at her new school.  Clearing her head of the negative thoughts, Nozomi threw her trash away as she continued to wander.

The day had gone relatively smoothly until sometime in the late afternoon.  A commotion caught Nozomi’s attention out of the corner of her eye.  It seemed a big burly guy (from the looks of it, some type of ogre) was arguing with one of the booths.  Nozomi saw Eli step in to try to diffuse the situation, but the customer wasn’t having it and tossed the food they were holding.  The hot noodle soup splashed all over Eli and before Nozomi knew it she found herself right next to Eli in the attempts to shield the other girl from the ogre.

“Hmph, serves her right!” the scoffed as Nozomi tried to get most of the hot liquid off Eli.  Nozomi glared at the guy who promptly gave her a sneer, “What, you got a problem with it?”

“Actually, we do,” a familiar voice said.  Nozomi turned in surprise to see the three girls from the morning coming their way.  To her even greater surprise, the guy started quivering in fear, “It’s hard to believe we go to the same school.  I suggest you leave before you cause any more trouble.  Especially for yourself.”  The guy beat a hasty retreat and short girl turned to Nozomi and Eli, “Why don’t we head to your infirmary?  Eli needs to get those burns looked at and probably get a change of clothes.”

Though Eli tried to protest, Nozomi wasn’t taking any of it as she half dragged the blond girl to the infirmary.  Once they arrived, Nozomi helped Eli out of her stained clothes and rubbed some burn ointment on her skin.  She vaguely noticed how smooth Eli’s skin was, but quickly squelched those thoughts.

“Sorry about that guy from before,” the short girl apologized, “Guys like him make our schools look bad.”

“It’s alright,” Eli said reassuringly, then looked between Nozomi and the other three, “Have you all met before?  Nozomi, these are Tsubasa Kira, Anju Yuki, and Erena Toudou from the neighboring school UTX.  Everyone, this is Nozomi Tojo, my roommate and the student council vice president.”

The short girl, Tsubasa, smiled, “We met this morning, but I forgot to exchange names.  It’s nice to officially meet you, Tojo-san.”

“Likewise,” Nozomi replied, though looked at them a little warily.

As if answering her unspoken question, Erena said, “Our families have been long standing allies with the Ayase clan; we’ve known Eli personally for around five years now.”

“But honestly, it’s rare that you all would come here, even if it was for the culture festival,” Eli said, “Something wrong?”

“What, we can’t just be here to see you?” Tsubasa grinned.  Then her face became serious, “Actually, we did have another reason to come.  Mind if we talk privately?”  Eli looked at Tsubasa hesitantly, then looked to Nozomi.

Nozomi got the cue, “Well, I should probably check on the festival to make sure everything’s running smoothly.  Why don’t you call me when you’re done?”

“In that case, would you mind showing us around?” Anju asked as Erena joined her.  Nozomi hesitated slightly, then nodded in approval.  Glancing once more at Eli, who gave her a reassuring nod, Nozomi, Anju, and Erena left the infirmary.

After the others had left, Eli looked at Tsubasa, “What is it you wanted to tell me?”

Tsubasa sighed, steeling herself for the upcoming conversation, “It’s about your father…”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nozomi did a cursory patrol around the festival, but finding no problems was left wondering how to interact with Anju and Erena.  Eli had never mentioned the three before, leaving Nozomi to ponder what their relationship really was (then of course questioned why it bothered her so much).

“Eli’s changed quite a bit, hasn’t she Erena?” Anju said, breaking the awkward silence, “To think Eli would become so close to anyone, especially a human.”

It had been a while since anyone had commented on her…human state.  But now that Nozomi thought about it, this was the perfect time to ask the question she’d always wanted to ask, “Did something happen to her when she was younger?  Something that had to do with a human?”

“Huh, she hasn’t told you?” Anju asked incredulously, “Her father…”

“Anju,” Erena said, cutting Anju off.  Anju promptly clapped a hand over her mouth, “I’m sorry, Tojo-san, but I don’t think that’s something that we have the right to discuss with you if Ayase-san hasn’t said anything.”

Nozomi waved away Erena’s apology, “No, I should apologize.  I didn’t mean to pry.”

“Well, maybe you will be able to help her like we were never able to,” Erena murmured under her breath.  Before Nozomi could comment on the statement, she saw Tsubasa walking their way.  Nozomi caught a glimpse of a dark expression, before Tsubasa’s face fell back into its usual smile.

“It’s getting late.  Guess we should be on our way,” Tsubasa said as she joined her two friends.

Nozomi looked over Tsubasa’s shoulder, but couldn’t find anyone, “Where’s Elichi?”

Tsubasa gave a remorseful look, “Ah, well…the short answer is that she’s still in the infirmary.  The news I had to give her was a little shocking.  But she’s fine.”  Nozomi barely heard the word _probably_ before she began to dash towards the infirmary herself.  As Tsubasa looked at Nozomi’s retreating back, she gave a sad smile, “I leave Eli in your hands.”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nozomi burst into the infirmary, frantically searching for Eli, “Elichi!”  But Eli wasn’t there.  Cursing under her breath, Nozomi began to search everywhere she could think of.  She started in the student council room, made her way to the various stalls, and even to the entrance, but couldn’t find Eli or anyone who had seen her.

“Nozomi!” Nozomi turned to see Nico walking towards her, “Great job tonight; looks like everything was a success.”

“Niccochi,” Nozomi blurted out, and Nico’s face grew serious as she heard the distress in Nozomi’s voice, “Have you seen Elichi?”

“Blond Giant?” Nico asked, “No, though I thought I saw someone like her heading towards the dorms.  What’s wrong?”

“That’s what I need to find out,” Nozomi said, “These three students from UTX came and apparently gave Elichi some bad news, and now I can’t find her…”

Nico put up a hand to stop the torrential outburst, “Okay, I think I got the idea.  You’ve tried everywhere?”  When Nozomi nodded, Nico asked, “What about the dorms?”  Nozomi shook her head, her face clearly torn between racing to the dorms and her duties to help with the end of the culture festival, “Don’t worry, we got this.  Go find Eli.”

Nozomi hesitated before nodding, “Thanks, Niccochi.”  Then she was off racing as fast as she could to the dorms.

When she arrived at their shared room, the door was ajar, though the lights were not turned on.  Taking a deep breath, Nozomi knocked on the door, “Elichi?”  Pushing the door open slowly, it took Nozomi a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the darkness.  When they did, she felt her heart stop.  Lying on the floor, curled up in a shivering ball was Eli.  Nozomi slowly made her way towards the vulnerable girl on the floor; when she looked at Eli’s face, it appeared that Eli was locked somewhere in her own mind.  Not knowing what else to do, Nozomi went to her room to grab the blanket off her bed and hurried back outside.  Gently, she wrapped the blanket around Eli, who initially pulled back at Nozomi’s touch.

“N-Nozomi?” Eli stammered as she seemingly came back to the present.

“Yeah, it’s me,” Nozomi replied, sitting in front of Eli, “Want me to get you something?  Tea?  Hot chocolate?”

Eli shook her head, “What are you doing here?”

Nozomi smiled gently at Eli, “I could say the same thing for you.”  She paused as she looked down at Eli, attempting to lighten the mood, “Though I have to say, you look pretty cute as an Elichi dumpling.”

Eli gave a small chuckle, somewhat loosening from her tense ball, “The festival?”

“Almost over,” Nozomi said, “Nicocchi’s covering for us.”

“I guess I owe her big time,” Eli sighed, finally coming out of her form.

“Don’t let her hear you say that,” Nozomi said.  The two looked at each other, then burst out laughing (though Nozomi’s laugh was more of relief than anything).

When they finally stopped, Eli’s face fell as she took in a shaky breath, “My father…”  Nozomi held her breath when she realized Eli was telling her the news the other three had brought, “My father…broke out of jail.  Apparently broke half the jail in the process, and though they were able to catch everyone else who’d broken out, he’s the only one still at large.”

“That’s horrible,” Nozomi said, though to be honest, she didn’t know what else to say.  Inwardly, she shivered at the thought of what Eli’s father could do now that he was free.  Obviously, if he had been put in jail in the first place, he wasn’t exactly your everyday person.

“What if he comes here?” Eli exclaimed, tears in her eyes, “What if he finds me?  What if…?”

Nozomi pulled Eli into an embrace with Eli’s head resting on her shoulder, “It’s alright.”  Eli tried to struggle, but Nozomi held tight, “It’ll be alright.  The school won’t let anything happen.  And most of all, I won’t let anything happen to you.”  Nozomi didn’t know what caused Eli to be so frightened; something bad must have happened, something that Eli hadn’t spoken of yet.  But now wasn’t the time for digging into Eli’s past.

“What are you saying?” Eli whispered.

“I know I’m not that reliable,” Nozomi said, “Me being a human and all.  But I’ll figure something out.  I swear to you I won’t let anything happen to you.  You’re my dear friend.  Please, let me help you.”  For a moment, neither of them moved from their position.  Then slowly, Nozomi felt Eli’s arms wrap around her.

“Nozomi,” Eli whispered, burying her face in Nozomi’s shoulder, “Can we please…stay like this?”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the blond man stared into a roaring fireplace, he gave a great sigh of satisfaction, “How many years has it been since I last felt warmth like this?”  Hearing a knock on his door, the man looked up to see a young woman with light blond hair and cool blue eyes, “You know what to do.”

“Yes, Father,” the girl said, bowing.  As she left, the man stared down again at his desk, a photo of Nozomi Tojo next to the warn photo of Eli Ayase.  His face broke into a smile, and if anyone had been in the room they would have seen the madness glowing in his eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for reading! This was a relatively long chapter, but now we're getting into some more interesting stuff. Let me know what you all think in the comments section below!


	8. This World Unknown

That night, Nozomi had a hard time falling asleep.  Though she was physically exhausted, her mind kept replaying that moment over and over again.  Never had she seen Eli so vulnerable, and Nozomi felt her heart breaking all over again when Eli had clung to her like a child.

Because of the culture festival taking up their weekend, the school had given them an extra couple of days off, so Nozomi was currently eating some of her favorite parfaits with Nico (Eli said she needed some time alone and had stayed in the dorms).  However, Nozomi wasn’t really tasting her food, her mind so preoccupied by the image of Eli last night.  And Nico was far too observant to miss Nozomi’s poor mood.

“How’s Eli?” Nico asked, breaking Nozomi out of her thoughts.

Nozomi shrugged, “A little tired.  She said she wanted to sleep at the dorms.”

“Must have been some bad news,” Nico commented and Nozomi remembered she’d blurted out some things that might have been better kept under wraps, “But that’s not all that’s bothering you, is it?”

Nozomi’s face fell and she turned to stare out the window.  “I…couldn’t really do anything for her.  I mean, I tried to convince her that I’d protect her, but what can a human like me do?” she whispered under her breath.

Nico paused as she took in Nozomi’s dejected expression, then sighed in exasperation, “I think what you’ve been doing for Eli is more than enough.  You’re not all seeing, Nozomi.  There’s only so much you can do for one person; I mean, if you hadn’t butted in before, Eli would have tried to run the entire cultural festival by herself and who knows what kind of condition she would be in now.  Especially after…whatever it was she heard.  She would probably have died from overwork and shock; not exactly good advertising material for our school.  ‘Send your kids here, and we’ll work them till they die.’”

Nozomi involuntarily giggled at Nico’s humorous impression, feeling much better after talking to the smaller girl, “Thanks, Niccochi.”

“Oh, shut up and eat your parfait,” Nico muttered, face flushed.  Nozomi heard the front bell jingle as new customers came in and thought nothing of it until three shadows fell on their table.  She looked up in surprise to see Tsubasa, Anju, and Erena.

“Hey, Tojo-san, long time no see,” Tsubasa said cheerfully, though Nozomi noted a hint of worry under the short girl’s tone.

“Hi Kira-san, Yuki-san, Toudou-san,” Nozomi replied.  She paused when she saw Nico gaping at her, “Ah, right, I should introduce you all.  Nicocchi, these are…”

“A-RISE,” Nico whispered.

“Huh?” Nozomi looked at Nico, confusion clearly written on her face.

Nico practically dragged Nozomi down to her height before furiously whispering, “What the heck is A-RISE doing here?”

Tsubasa gave a hesitant chuckle, “Ha ha, well, guess that makes things a little easier.  Good afternoon to you too, Nico Yazawa.”

“Wait, you know them?” Nozomi asked.

Nico sighed, “I don’t think anyone in our community doesn’t know A-RISE.  They’re one of the leading squads in our military’s Intelligence Division.”

“You flatter us, Yazawa-san,” Tsubasa grinned wryly, “We’re only one of many squads.  We just happen to be very good at what we do.”

“So, what are you doing here?  I hardly think this is a social call,” Nico retorted.  Nozomi’s heart sank as she saw the three trade glances.

“Tojo-san, could we have a moment of your time?” Tsubasa asked.  She looked at Nico who shook her head.

“Like I’m going to leave Nozomi alone with you three,” Nico growled, “Look what happened the last time you talked to Eli alone.  Whatever you have to say, you can say it in front of me.”  Nozomi gave her a relieved smile.

Tsubasa chuckled to herself, “Point taken.”  Nico moved to scoot next to Nozomi while the other three took seats opposite the two, “If we could get right to it, what do you know about Ayase-san’s family?”

Nozomi hesitated to talk about Eli’s family behind her back, but when she looked to Tsubasa it seemed she didn’t have a choice, “Elichi said she has a younger sister who lives with her grandparents.”

“What about her father?” Erena bluntly asked.

“Only what you all told her yesterday,” Nozomi replied, getting quickly annoyed with their line of questioning, “What’s this all about?”

The three traded glances once again before Tsubasa began to speak, “His name is Saito Ayase, formerly Saito Watanabe.  He took the Ayase name after he married into the family.  From the information we gathered, he was originally human.”

“Human?” Nico said, “Originally?”

Tsubasa nodded, “He was a scientist who studied the differences between humans and other species, supposedly to help those who suffered from various diseases.  However, after his wife died nine years ago, the Intelligence Division started getting reports about strange occurrences in his lab.  Stories about humans who could leap over five story buildings or those who could breathe fire.”

“You sure that wasn’t, like, a mistake or something?” Nico asked, scratching her head, “Maybe he was asking some other species for help and that’s when you happened to get your report?”

It was Erena who shook her head, “If it was only a handful of occurrences, then we couldn’t be sure.  But there were too many cases to be mere coincidences.”

Anju picked up the story, “Several Other Species people went missing the same time the reports began surfacing.  Because the other squads weren’t making any headway, we were assigned the case even though we were rather young at the time.  It was really baffling at first; the victims were all of different backgrounds, lifestyles, locations, you name it.  The only similarity we could find was that they all disappeared around the same time.  That and the lack of any form of ransom or suicide note.”

“Just as we thought we would hit a dead end, we discovered the connection.  Ogres had super strength.  Tengus had wings for flight.  Salamanders could eat and breathe fire.  All their powers could be used to artificially enhance humans for combat.”

“And unfortunately, that’s exactly what we found,” Tsubasa said, trading off from Anju, “Not only had Saito kidnapped the other species, he had found ways to extract aspects of their innate abilities and implanted them into his human followers.  He was soon arrested, tried, and sentenced as an Other Species criminal, as he’d already implanted himself with powers.  That was five years ago.”

“And now he’s escaped,” Nozomi said to which Tsubasa nodded, “But I still don’t get it.  I understand why you would want to warn Elichi.  But why are you telling me all this?”

Tsubasa sighed, “It wasn’t until a few days after Saito’s trial ended that Eli’s grandparents realized something was wrong.  That’s when we all realized how far he’d really gone.”  Nozomi felt her heart sinking as she saw the cold look on Tsubasa’s face, “Not only had he experimented on himself and his followers, he even experimented on his own children.”  Nozomi could only stare at Tsubasa as realization dawned on her.  And only now could she understand Eli’s deep fears Nozomi had seen from the night before.

“Tojo-san, I want to ask you a question that may seem odd to you.”  When Nozomi slowly nodded, Tsubasa said, “Have you ever met Eli Ayase before you came to Otonokizaka?”

“What the…?” Nico exclaimed, “What type of question was that?”

“Five years ago, Eli lost control of her powers.  At the time, she’d been playing with a human girl who seemingly got separated from her parents.  But when Eli lost control, she couldn’t recognize friend from foe.  Thankfully, Eli’s grandparents found the two in the nick of time and managed to stop Eli.  But to do so, they had to seal part of Eli’s powers inside the young girl, though they wiped the girl’s memories of the incident.”  Memories of the nightmares rose unbidden in Nozomi’s mind as she looked up at the other three.

“Nozomi Tojo, if that girl was you five years ago, then Saito Ayase is coming after you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so the plot thickens...or something like that (more like a slew of background information, really). The chapter is a little shorter than the others, but hopefully it wasn't too confusing. Let me know what you think in the comments section.


	9. A Tale of Memories

_Five years ago…_

The rain wasn’t letting up as a lavender haired young girl continued to look forlornly out the hotel window.  Her parents had come to the town for some business and had dragged her along like every other time.  She sat down slowly, shuffling through the fortune telling cards given to her by her grandmother and wished for the 100th time that she’d been allowed to stay at the shrine with her grandparents instead of being stuck in a boring hotel.  It wasn’t like her parents were around that much anyways; they should just let her do whatever she wanted.

Now that she thought about it, there wasn’t any reason for her to stay in the hotel room.  Her parents wouldn’t be back until long after the sun set; she only had to return before it got dark.  Discovering that one of her parents had accidentally left their key behind, the girl headed out to explore the hotel grounds.

The girl watched as various people walked in and out of the hotel and tried to guess things like where they were from or where they were going.  At some point the rain turned into a light drizzle, light enough that the girl decided to head out for a bit.  The girl breathed in the wet air; in her opinion it was much better than the stuffy hotel air.  Wandering around, the girl stumbled across a small park.  It reminded her a little of the park near her grandparents shrine, so she opted to walk in.  Because it had been raining recently, no one was actually playing there.  As the girl turned to walk away, she thought she heard a hiccupping sob coming from one of the dome shaped objects in the park.  She poked her head into an opening in the dome only to find a blond haired girl crying.

_A foreigner?_ the lavender haired girl thought to herself.  Out loud, she asked, “Are you okay?”

The blond haired girl’s head shot up and she furiously rubbed her eyes, “I’m not crying.”

The lavender haired girl decided not to point out the obvious, instead asking, “Want to play?  There’s no one else here, but we can have the entire playground to ourselves!”  The blond haired girl looked at her in surprise.  The lavender haired girl grinned, dragging the other girl out.  The two chased each other around the playground, jumped in puddles, climbed over everything (that was safe, at least).  The lavender haired girl even showed off her fortune telling cards.

But nothing lasted forever, and soon it was starting to get dark.  The lavender haired girl’s face fell when she realized she had to go back.

“You’re leaving?” the blond haired girl asked sadly.

The lavender haired girl nodded, “I have to get back before Mom and Dad return.  But I don’t want to ‘cause I have more fun out here with you.  Maybe we can play again tomorrow?”

The blond girl went to say something, but before she could, she suddenly doubled over in pain.  The lavender haired girl went to rush towards the other girl, only to be blown back as the blond girl screamed and black energy began to swirl around her.  The lavender haired girl looked on in fear as the darkness grew thicker and thicker until only the girl’s cold blue eyes were left.  As they turned to stare at the lavender haired girl, the lavender haired girl’s limbs finally began to move again and she found herself running as fast as she could in the opposite direction.  She didn’t dare look back as she heard the pattering of large feet.  Rounding a street corner, the girl tripped and fell hard.  Wind knocked out of her, the girl looked up to see the huge dark mass baring down on her.  But before the mass could reach her, it was suddenly knocked back by two people.  The lavender haired girl noted that one was a grey haired man and one was a white haired woman.

“Elichika!  Calm down,” the woman said to the creature, who simply growled at her, “I know it hurts, but you have to fight it!”

“It’s no use, she can’t hear you,” the man said, “You know we don’t have a choice.”

The woman glared at him before her face fell, “I know.”  Then she turned to the lavender haired girl, “I’m sorry, little one.  But we’re going to need your help.”  No sooner had the woman said that then the dark creature gave a roar and charged the three.  The man gave a grunt as he slammed the creature into the ground.

“Now’s our chance!” the man cried.  The woman nodded, then placed a hand on the lavender haired girl’s forehead.  The girl had little time to feel confused as a mind shattering pain split her head and she fell unconscious.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Present day…_

Nozomi’s head continued to spin after she and Nico parted ways from A-RISE.  It was shocking enough hearing about Eli’s past; on top of that, hearing that Eli’s father might be targeting her was a little too much to handle all at once.

“Hey, you know, maybe you should stay on school grounds for a while,” Nico suggested, “I’m sure Headmistress Minami is already putting some measures in place, seeing that A-RISE already informed her of the danger.  We should probably go talk to her to see if there is anything else you two need to do.”

“That won’t be necessary.”

Nozomi’s head whipped up as she heard a monotone voice speak to them.  A young woman stood in the middle of the sidewalk in front of them, carefully analyzing them with cold blue eyes.  As the wind began to pick up, the young woman tucked a strand of light blond hair behind one ear.

Nico quickly stood defensively in front of Nozomi, “Who are you?”

The young woman looked straight at Nozomi, “I think you know exactly who I am.”

“Alisa,” Nozomi whispered.  Nico gave her a questioning look, to which Nozomi responded, “Elichi’s sister.  What are you doing here?”

Alisa Ayase closed her eyes, “I think you know the answer to that question as well.”  Faster than Nozomi could react, Alisa streaked towards the two older girls.  Nico cursed, slamming a foot into the ground in the attempt to slow Alisa down.  However, Alisa simply jumped over the broken ground and landed behind Nozomi.  Before she could do anything, Nozomi felt herself being hoisted into the air as Alisa effortlessly lifted her.

“Sh…”  Nico didn’t even have time to finish speaking before Alisa stabbed Nico through the stomach with her bare hands.

“NO!” Nozomi shouted, struggling as hard as she could as she watched Nico fall to the ground in slow motion, disbelief written all over her face.  Alisa simply sighed as she leaped away from the scene, carrying a screaming Nozomi to her father.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was late afternoon when Eli finally decided to get out of her bed.  Sighing, she walked out into their shared living space only to find that Nozomi hadn’t returned yet.  Frowning slightly, Eli checked her phone but found no messages.  That was strange; Nozomi said she was just heading out to eat with Nico for brunch, but would be back by the afternoon.  Eli sent Nozomi a quick text and was even more surprised to hear the ping from Nozomi’s room.  Poking her head inside, Eli discovered that Nozomi had accidentally left her phone by her bedside.

“Geez Nozomi,” Eli chuckled to herself.  Nozomi must have been really worried last night.  Eli couldn’t help getting a little flustered when she thought about how she’d been acting.  Like a child instead of an adult.  But now that she was thinking about it all she could think about was how warm Nozomi felt as she’d held Eli last night.

Eli began to get a little worried when Nozomi still didn’t show up, “Well, I guess I could try calling Nico.”  The worry began to grow when the phone rang three times and no one picked up, but she sighed in relief when someone finally answered on the fourth ring, “Gosh Nico, don’t scare me like that.”

There was a pause on the other end of the phone before an unfamiliar man’s voice asked, “Are you a friend of Nico Yazawa?”

“Huh?” Eli replied, surprise turning into suspicion, “Wait, who is this?”

“My name is Daisuke Nishikino,” the man introduced himself, “Your friend is currently being treated at the Nishikino Hospital for critical injuries…”  The rest of his words were downed out in the pounding that began in her ears.  Nico was hurt?  Critically injured?  Who could have done that to her?

And where the heck was Nozomi?

“Hello?  Are you still with me?” Dr. Nishikino asked.

“Huh?  Uh, yeah,” Eli stuttered.

“We’re doing everything we can for her, so please don’t worry,” the doctor said.  Eli heard shouting in the background, “If you would please excuse me.”  Then he hung up.

Eli felt herself sink to the floor.  Why was this happening?  With no answers in sight, Eli had only one other person to turn to.  It didn’t take her long to reach the headmistress’s office and it seemed like Headmistress Minami was already waiting for her.

“It seems like you’ve already heard the news,” Headmistress Minami said.

“How’s Nico-san?” Eli asked.

Headmistress Minami sighed heavily, “Honestly, not good.  She was stabbed through the stomach and had lost quite a bit of blood.  But the Nishikino Hospital has some of the best doctors around.  She’s in good hands.”

Stabbed through the stomach?  Eli couldn’t even imagine the brutality of the attack.  But that wasn’t all that was bothering her, “Headmistress, have you seen or heard from Nozomi Tojo?  She and Nico were supposed to meet this morning but I haven’t seen Nozomi all day.”

“About that,” Headmistress Minami said as she reached into a drawer, “We found this in the mail room.”  She handed Eli a letter, the seal already broken.  Looking up hesitantly, Eli opened the letter when the headmistress nodded.  The letter fell from numb fingers as Eli felt her blood freeze.

The letter contained a single lock of lavender hair and the words _‘You know where to find me’_ scribbled in blood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we finally have the official introduction of Alisa! Who's working for her Father?! Also, poor Nico-chan...sorry about that. But she's being treated by the best at Nishikino Hospital, so no worries!
> 
> Let me know what you all think in the comments section below!


	10. Mandatory Happiness

Nozomi groaned as she began to wake up, pain coursing through her body.  As she moved to a seated position, she heard rattling and turned to see that her feet had been chained to a wall.  Looking around, she found herself in what looked to be an old dungeon.  _Well, at least it’s clean,_ she thought to herself.  But before she could really figure out her situation, a figure materialized in front of the bars of her cell, practically giving her a heart attack.

“Welcome, Nozomi Tojo, to the Ayase Manor,” a man’s silky smooth voice said, “I apologize for the rough treatment in bringing you here and my inability to provide you the proper hospitality.  The main building is sadly a little…messy right now.”

Nozomi shivered at the thought of what that meant, “Who are you?  What do you want from me?”

The man smirked at her, “What’s the rush to know?  Besides, we’re still missing our star player.  Don’t worry, I’m sure she’ll be here soon.”  With that, he seemed to melt back into the shadows, his creepy chuckle the only thing he left with her.  Nozomi shivered again and curled into a ball.  Nothing that Tsubasa and the others said had come even close to preparing Nozomi for meeting Saito Ayase in person.  There was only one thing left for her to do: try to find a way out.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eli made her way through the Nishikino Hospital to the room Nico had been assigned.  Dr. Nishikino had informed Headmistress Minami that Nico had made it through surgery and would be open to visitors after a few days of recovery, and the headmistress had been kind enough to pass the information to Eli.  Taking a deep breath, Eli ascended the last flight of stairs and turned the corner to reach Nico’s room.  She was surprised to find that she wasn’t the only one there to see Nico.

“Maki?” Eli asked after seeing the familiar redhead just outside Nico’s door.

Maki jumped, pulling her hand back from where it was just about to touch the doorknob, “E-Eli?  What are you doing here?”

Eli gave a gentle smile, “Headmistress Minami told me about Nico’s recovery, so I was coming to see how she was doing.  Seems like someone beat me to it though.”

“I-it’s not what you’re thinking!” Maki tried to deny, though her face was pretty flushed by now, “I’m just here to check up on Papa’s patient; he said to give him an update after I’m done.”

“I see,” Eli replied, hiding a chuckle, “Do you want to go in together?”  Eli didn’t wait for Maki’s answer and knocked on the door.

“Come in,” Nico’s voice said and Eli and Maki entered the room.  Nico looked up in surprise at the two of them, “Okay, I get why Eli’s here, but what are you doing here, Maki?”

Maki’s face turned an even darker shade of crimson, “It’s not like I’m here to see you.  I’m here on the doctor’s orders.”

“Right…,” Nico said, obviously not convinced.  Then her face fell as she turned to Eli, “Eli, I…”

But Eli shook her head before Nico could say anything, “Nico-san, it’s not your fault.  When my father wants something he can be rather…aggressive.”

“I see,” Nico replied, relaxing a little at Eli’s quick forgiveness, “But really, I wasn’t expecting your sister to be so powerful.  I think it was somewhat my fault for letting my guard down.”

“That’s the way she was built,” Eli smiled sadly.

Nico frowned, “A-RISE touched on that when they met up with us the other day.  You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to, but what were they talking about?”

Eli held Maki back who looked like she was going to explode, “Maki, it’s alright.  With everything that’s happened, I think you all have the right to know.”  Eli took a deep breath as she began to steel herself for the upcoming conversation, “You heard about how my father experimented on humans to enhance certain characteristics, like strength or flight abilities, right?”  When Nico nodded, Eli continued, “What most people don’t know is that my mother initially helped my father with his experiments.”

“You see, his experiments didn’t start out as anything bad.  He was doing it to see if he could find ways to cure those who had been paralyzed in traffic accidents or lost limbs during the war.  But as time wore on, the human government started pushing him to dabbling in the more…unethical experiments.  Theories on how to transplant limbs, such as the wings of a tengu, so that humans could fly.  Experiments like that.  My mother was of course furious when she found out, and they got into a lot of arguments.”

“When I was about nine, my parents were arguing about a theory of his in the lab.  Alisa and I were there at the time, I don’t remember why.  But at some point, one of the experiments malfunctioned.  I remember there was an explosion, and by the time the dust cleared, both Alisa and I were unhurt.  But only because our mother had saved us.  I still remember her smile just before she died.”

“Father was inconsolable.  He threw himself into his work, making his previous theories reality.  Though he gained the financial support of the government, he’d lost the most important person to him.  And behind even the government’s back, he began researching on ways to revive the dead.”

Maki’s and Nico’s eyes went wide, but it was Nico who spoke, “You don’t mean…?”

Eli nodded, “He was searching for a way to revive our mother.  He researched in the archives to see if there was any precedent, and it seemed he’d found something.  The keeper of souls: the Reapers.”

Maki stammered, “But, Reapers are just mythical creatures, aren’t they?  Stories that parents that tell their kids so they would behave.”

“All stories are grounded in truth, Maki,” Eli replied, “Even this one.  Reapers were said to be beings that could control the souls of both the living and the dead.  Powerful ones were even able to bring the dead back to life.  But no one had seen a Reaper for over 100 years.  So my father decided to create one.”

“He tried with both Alisa and me, though he quickly found out that Alisa’s succubus powers were too powerful and interfered with his experiments.  He turned her instead into his mindless puppet, and focused his efforts on me.”

“Five years ago, he succeeded just before he was captured by the Intelligence Division,” Eli said, concluding her explanation, “Though it wasn’t for a few more weeks that we actually figured it out.”

Nico asked, though it was more of a statement than a question, “Then your grandparents sealed your powers away in a girl who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Maki’s face lit up in recognition, “And that kid was Nozomi-sempai?”

Nico sighed, “Is that why you treated Nozomi so badly when she transferred in?”

Eli nodded guiltily, “I was afraid of what would happen if the seal were to become undone.  I can’t control my Reaper powers; what if I’d hurt someone?  But after a while, I realized that my grandparents wouldn’t have made the seal so easy to break.  And I started really getting to know Nozomi…”

“Yeah, yeah, and the rest is history,” Nico said.  Her face became serious, “I guess there’s really only one question left: what are we going to do?”

Eli looked surprise, “Wait, ‘we?’”

“Don’t look so surprised,” Nico replied, “Nozomi’s my friend too.  I can’t let you do all the heavy lifting by yourself.  Besides, I owe your sister back for this.”  She pointed to her stomach that had been heavily wrapped in bandages.

“While I appreciate the concern, you aren’t coming with me,” Eli said sternly, “Besides the fact that you’re injured, you wouldn’t stand a chance against Alisa or my father.”

Nico grimaced, “While I know I haven’t exactly proven myself, I know for a fact that I won’t fall for the same tricks twice.  With two of us working together, we stand a better chance of getting her back safely.”

“Make that more than two,” a voice in the hallway said.  The trio looked up in surprise to see not only the second years Honoka, Kotori, and Umi, but also the first years Rin and Hanayo.

“What?” Eli asked, absolutely shocked.

“We overheard your conversation about going to save Nozomi-sempai,” Kotori said, “After hearing that, we couldn’t just leave things be.”

Eli shook her head, “This isn’t a game, guys.”

“How rude,” Umi said, “We would never treat our friend’s life as a game.”

“We’re all WAY tougher than we look, nya,” Rin pitched in, “And we’d be more likely to succeed if we work together!”

“Nozomi-sempai has been really nice to us,” Hanayo explained, “We want to be able to help her too.”

“This isn’t just about you anymore,” Nico said, “This is our problem now.  Let us help you, Eli.”

“Nico,” Eli breathed.  She looked out at the others, who gave her various encouraging expressions, as tears began to form in her eyes, “Thank you, everyone.”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After everyone left, Nico looked up in surprise to see Maki still standing there, “It’s getting late; don’t you need to head home?”

Maki snorted, “You forget?  This is practically my second home.”

“Oh, right,” Nico replied, and the two fell into an awkward silence.  Nico vaguely noted that Maki hadn’t called her any names that day before a yawn overtook her.

“Sorry, guess I should be going,” Maki said, turning to leave.  She stopped when she felt a tug on the back of her shirt and glanced over to see Nico looking rather forlorn.

“Um, mind staying for a little bit?  Just until I fall asleep,” Nico hurriedly explained, “I’m…not used to it being so quiet.”

Maki thought Nico looked quite cute at that moment, but opted not to say anything.  Sitting herself on the edge of the bed, Maki asked, “How are the little ones?”

“A handful, like always,” Nico grumbled, but Maki could heard the love Nico had for her siblings, “Actually…”  The two talked about Nico’s three siblings Cocoa, Cocoro, and Cotaro; Maki laughed at their various escapades.  At some point Maki had fallen back on the bed and found herself face to face with Nico.  There was a pause before Nico asked, “Tell me, Maki, why’d you stop coming over to our house?”

“That’s…,” Maki stammered, but noted the seriousness in Nico’s expression, “It’s…really stupid.”

“If it’s something I did, I want to know,” Nico said, “I don’t want us to go back to ignoring each other.”

Maki hesitated, then sighed and began to speak, “Remember that time I gave you that cat doll as a gift?  Well, when you said you lost it, I don’t know, I just thought you didn’t like it and threw it away or something.  And it hurt my feelings.”  Maki blushed and turned away, “I know, I know, it’s really stupid, I mean, it was just a doll and…”  When Nico began to giggle, Maki turned even redder and growled, “It’s not funny, Nico-chan.”

“Sorry,” Nico said, wiping the tears from her eyes, “I guess it really was my fault.”  She winced as pain shot through her stomach, but stopped Maki from calling the nurse, “It’s alright, just got to be mindful about moving around too much.  Getting back on topic, when I said I lost it, there’s actually a lot more I didn’t tell you.”

“You see, the day after you gave me the doll, Cotaro had a bit of a, well let’s say, temper tantrum.  And because of that, he kind of…destroyed our neighborhood.”

“Eh?” Maki said, eyes wide.

Nico chewed on her lower lip, “Yeah.  Thankfully no one was hurt or anything, but all our stuff got buried under all the rubble.  Including the doll you gave me.  I tried to search for it, but I couldn’t find it.  Then some weird guy came around and practically fixed all the houses for free.  And because of that, everything that we had was gone.  In the end, I couldn’t find the doll you gave me.  I didn’t want to sound like I was blaming it on my little brother, and I figured if I told you, you would have gotten your parents to, I don’t know, build us all new houses or something.  And I didn’t want to be indebted to you or anything, so I just said I lost it.”

“Oh,” was all Maki could reply after that.  So it had all been just one big misunderstanding.  Now she was feeling even worse about her actions, “Sorry, Nico-chan.”

“What are you saying?” Nico said, stroking Maki’s hair comfortingly, “It’s all in the past now.  All we can do is move forward.”  Nico grinned, “I hope you treat me well in the future, Maki-chan.”

Maki smiled, “Yeah, you too Nico-chan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait! Got a little busy and forgot to post the next chapter. Comments and critiques welcome as always!


	11. Fate/Zero

Nozomi had exhausted herself trying to escape from her cell.  Though the dungeon was certainly old fashioned, it had been fairly well kept.  She couldn’t find any rust on the metal bars and the chains seemed relatively new.  She’d even tried the window, though grimly noted that she wouldn’t be able to fit through given her…assets.  While she was still lamenting her position, Nozomi suddenly jumped when she realized she wasn’t alone.

“Alisa!” Nozomi stammered.

Alisa continued to stare at Nozomi, her face as impassive as ever, “If you’re trying to escape, it’s useless.”

“Well, I won’t know until I try,” Nozomi grumbled to herself.  She took a better look at Alisa.  Though her hair and eyes were lighter than Eli’s, one could easily tell that they were sisters.  For some reason, though, Alisa reminded Nozomi of how Eli had been when they first met.  Trying to get some information from the younger girl, Nozomi asked, “Alisa, what does your father want from me?”

Alisa’s expression darkened as she turned away, “What doesn’t he want from anyone?”

“Alisa dear, are you down here?”  Alisa froze as she heard her father’s voice and Nozomi saw the younger girl’s expression change to fear.  As the man appeared at the top of the stairwell, Saito said, “Now, what did I tell you about talking to the prisoner?”

“Yes, Father,” Alisa replied as she bowed to him.  Before Nozomi could comprehend what was happening, Alisa slammed into the ground as if by an invisible force.  Nozomi watched in horror as the young girl was smashed again and again while Saito simply sneered down at her.

“Bad children must be punished,” he said in a sing song voice, “Spare the rod, spoil the kid.”  When he was apparently done, he turned his attention to Nozomi who involuntarily scooted back, “Don’t worry; I know if I handle you poorly you’ll break.  Besides, I need you to release Eli’s seal.”  With that, Saito began to giggle to himself as he took his leave.

Nozomi watched Alisa pick herself off the ground, whatever injuries she’d sustained already gone, “Are you okay?”

Alisa nodded, her neutral expression back to her face, “He built me to withstand more than that.”  Nozomi couldn’t imagine what unspeakable horrors Alisa had gone through.  It made Nozomi understand Eli’s behavior a little better.  But it also made Nozomi unbelievably sad, knowing that Alisa had likely never been shown enough kindness and compassion to break away from her father.

As Alisa turned to go, Nozomi suddenly blurted out, “Hey Alisa, have you ever had a parfait?”  Alisa gave Nozomi a blank look and shook her head.  At that, Nozomi gave the younger girl a warm smile, “When I get out of here, why don’t you come with me and your sister next time?  It’ll be my treat.”  Alisa continued to stare at Nozomi, then hurriedly turned on her heels and fled upstairs.  Nozomi could have sworn she saw a blush on the younger girl’s face.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Preparations were complete for Operation Rescue Nozomi.  Kotori and Umi (well, Umi’s head) were currently flying over the Ayase Manor to scout out the situation.  Eli and Nico would be the main infiltration force, with Honoka and Maki as backup; Hanayo and Rin would help facilitate the escape.

“Sorry for the wait everyone,” Umi said as she and Kotori landed in front of the group who had gathered outside the Ayase Manor.

“How does it look inside?” Eli asked.

Kotori shook her head, “It was hard to tell, but there didn’t seem to by any guards or anything.  Unfortunately, we couldn’t even tell where your father or sister were, let alone if Nozomi was inside.”

“This has to be it, though,” Nico said, “Couldn’t see the guy going anywhere else.”

“Alright,” Eli said, “No change in the plan then.  Once we find Nozomi, we free her and get out.  If you sense you’re in any danger, get out as fast as you can even if you have to abandon the plan.  I doubt Nozomi would want to see any of you hurt, even if it was to help her.”

“That goes for you too, Nozomi,” Nico said.  When Eli was about to protest, Nico cut her off, “You’re the last person Nozomi wants to see hurt.  No offense to anyone here.”

“None taken!” Honoka cheerfully replied, with various eye rolls and giggles going on behind her, “Alright, everyone ready?”  Eli felt tears prick her eyes when everyone nodded, determination in their eyes.  Taking several deep calming breaths, Eli nodded and the group began their mission.

As Kotori had said, there were no guards to impede their way as they hurried into the main building.  However, once they stepped inside, Eli and the others almost gagged at the sight and stench of dried blood.  The inside was pure chaos, “Grandma, Grandpa.”  There was no sign of the people who lived here before.  They hurriedly continued down several winding hallways.  The air was deathly still; Eli could hear her heart pounding in her ears.  Just when she was wondering if she’d gotten the location wrong, Eli froze as she felt a familiar presence.

“Long time no see, Onee-chan,” Alisa said as she materialized in front of the team.

Nico grinned as she stepped forward, “Looks like we hit the jackpot.  Everyone, go on ahead.  I got this.”

“Nico!” Eli protested.

But Nico cut her off, “We don’t have time to argue.  Besides, didn’t I tell you?  I have a score to settle with your sister.  Hurry, Eli.”

Eli hesitated, then rushed past her younger sister, “Sorry, Nico.”  Honoka hurried after her.

“What are you waiting for?” Nico growled as Maki took a defensive position behind Nico.

“Like I’m leaving you here alone, Nico-chan,” Maki retorted, “You just got over your previous injuries; I’m not letting my parents’ hard work go to waste.”

Nico chuckled, “Why don’t you just be honest?  Alright Maki, don’t fall behind now!”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eli and Honoka continued through the rest of the house but couldn’t find any sign of Nozomi or Eli’s father.  It wasn’t until Honoka paused at a painting of Eli’s grandfather that Eli paused as well.

“Hey Eli, the air feels different here,” Honoka said.  As she reached out and touched the portrait, Eli and Honoka jumped back as the picture moved, revealing a hidden staircase.  Eli was shocked; in all the years she’d lived there, she’d never come across any hidden areas.  The two cautiously made their way down the stairwell until they reached what appeared to be a dungeon.  Eli’s heart skipped a beat where she saw Nozomi, chained and gagged but otherwise fine.

“Hang in there, Nozomi-sempai!” Honoka exclaimed.  With a grunt, she pried open the bars to the cell and Eli leapt through to untie Nozomi’s gag.

“Honoka, could you break the chain at Nozomi’s feet?” Eli called over her shoulder as she got ready to grab Nozomi and flee.

To her surprise, Nozomi tried to push Eli away as she tearfully said, “Run Eli.  It’s a trap.”

“Well, well, it seems like our star player has finally arrived,” a man’s voice said.  Eli felt her heart freeze as she slowly turned around to come face to face with her father.  She vaguely noted that Honoka was lying face down, unmoving, “Come now, don’t make that kind of face.  You’re friend here is just…taking a little nap.”  Saito opened his arms wide and smiled at Eli, “It’s been a long time, Eli.  Won’t you give your father a hug?”

But Eli took a step back, shielding Nozomi, “Release Nozomi, Father.”

The man looked hurt as he sighed and put his arms down, “Oh come now Eli, I wasn’t going to hurt the person you care about so much.  Look, she’s unhurt.”

“Let her go,” Eli demanded.

Saito’s eyes hardened, “Eli, I thought I taught you better than that.”  He snapped his fingers and Eli felt a vice begin to grip her mind.  She’d forgotten about the ability he’d given himself, or more likely had chosen to forget.

Mind control over those he experimented on.

“Now, Eli,” Saito said, eyes glowing, “Take back what is rightfully yours.”  Eli felt her body move on its own and could do nothing to stop herself from gripping Nozomi’s shoulders.  Placing her palm against the other girl’s forehead, Eli gave a single command.

“Kai.”

Nozomi screamed as she felt something being ripped from her soul and Saito began laughing like a maniac.  A dark energy swirled around Eli as her powers returned to her.

“At long last!” Saito shouted in glee, “I have the power of a Reaper!”  Nozomi collapsed on the ground as the last of the energy flew to Eli.  With great effort, Nozomi lifted her head to look at Eli.

“Elichi…,” Nozomi whispered weakly.  But she got no response from the vacantly staring Eli.

“Oh mighty Reaper,” Saito said as he stood before Eli, “Now that you have awakened, grant my wish.  Bring back the soul of my wife.”  Nozomi had no time to react as she felt the splattering of something warm.  Reaching up to her face, she stared down at her hand covered in blood.

Saito gave a gurgled cough, “W-why?”  Eli continued to stare into space as she retracted the shadows that had stabbed Saito.  Staring up at the ceiling, Eli jumped and smashed her way through several layers of the house before vanishing into the night.  Nozomi thought she heard shouts of alarm before her consciousness faded and her vison went black.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nozomi awoke to white washed walls and flickering fluorescent bulbs.  Groaning, she tried to sit up, only for hands to steady her.

“Careful now,” a gentle voice said.  Nozomi turned to see a lady who looked like an older version of Maki, “My name is Dr. Kikuko Nishikino; I believe you know my daughter, Maki.  How are you feeling, Tojo-san?”

“Alright, I guess,” Nozomi croaked, mouth apparently dry.  Maki’s mother handed Nozomi a glass of water, which Nozomi gladly took.

“You’re awake.”  Nozomi looked up to see Nico standing in the doorway.  There were a few bandages on the smaller girl, but otherwise she seemed okay, “You gave us a good scare back there.”

It was then that Nozomi remembered, “Wait, what about Elichi?”

Nico’s face fell and she looked away, “She…disappeared.”  It looked like she was about to say more, then shook her head and smiled at Nozomi, “Don’t worry; we’ve got everyone looking for her, even Headmistress Minami!  You just rest up and get better.”  Promising to come back again, Nico left the room only to bump into Maki.

“Why didn’t you tell her?” Maki demanded.

Nico let out the breath she’d been holding, “Until I hear officially otherwise, all those people in comas are just a coincidence.  There’s nothing that ties them to Eli.”

“Yet,” Maki replied sarcastically.  Nico grimaced, but didn’t argue.  It was only a matter of time before Nozomi (and the world) found out.  Nico couldn’t even imaging what would happen then.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait! Got a couple more chapters in mind until the end, but now that the story is starting to come to a close I'm having a harder time getting my ideas together (I never want anything to end). Hopefully, you all can bare with me! Comments and critiques welcome as always.


	12. Sound of Drop

Nozomi knew that something was wrong when the hospital suddenly became busier and busier.  She tried to ask Nico and the others about it multiple times, but they all gave her vague answers.  It wasn’t until she overheard a couple of nurses talking that Nozomi finally understood.

“Nurse Takahashi, do you know why we have so many coma patients?” one of the younger nurses asked an older nurse, clearly frightened.  The older nurse gave a reassuring answer, but Nozomi’s mind was already racing.  Coma?  Did it have something to do with Eli?  Before she had time to really think about it, she heard a knock on her door.

“Hey Tojo-san, how are you feeling?” Tsubasa asked as she walked to Nozomi’s bedside.

Nozomi gave a shrug that could have meant anything, “Why do I have the feeling this isn’t a social call?”

Tsubasa winced, “Caught red handed, huh?”

“Where’s Eli Ayase?” Erena asked bluntly.

Nozomi shook her head, “I haven’t seen her since…”  Nozomi trailed off, inwardly shuttering at the memory.  The memory of those cold eyes and black shadows.

“So the rumors were true,” Tsubasa grimly said, “I’d hoped it wasn’t so.”

Nozomi looked at the three with confusion on her face, “What’s going on?”

“What, you don’t know what your student council president has been up to?” Erena growled.

“Erena!” Anju exclaimed, “That’s taking it too far.”

Tsubasa gave Erena a hard stare, before turning back to Nozomi, “I’m sure you’ve heard around about the recent coma cases.  Their numbers have been on a dramatic rise for the past few weeks.  We believe that Eli has awoken to her Reaper powers and it currently going berserk.  We need to find her as soon as possible; if there’s anything you know, we want you to tell us.  Your friends haven’t been very helpful in that regard.”

But Nozomi just shook her head in denial, “That can’t be her.  Elichi wouldn’t hurt anyone.”

“That thing isn’t Eli anymore!” Erena angrily yelled, frustration clear in her voice, “If we don’t stop her…”

“Erena, that’s enough,” Tsubasa said firmly and Erena closed her mouth.  When she saw that Erena wasn’t about to say more, Tsubasa turned back to Nozomi, “Please Nozomi.  If you think of something, let us know.  We don’t want to hurt Eli unless we absolutely have to.”  With that, Tsubasa put their business card by Nozomi’s bedside and the three of them left.

“Well that was…interesting.”

Nozomi looked up to see Nico standing in the doorway.  Then, Nozomi looked away, “Did you know?”

Though Nozomi hadn’t said what specifically, it seemed Nico had caught on.  Sighing, Nico replied, “Yeah.”

“Then why didn’t you…,” Nozomi started to angrily shout.  That was, until she saw the dark circles under Nico’s eyes.

Nico turned away guiltily, “I meant to tell you sooner.  But every time I put it off, it became harder and harder to tell you.  And, I guess, I just didn’t want to believe it.  That Eli could be doing those things.”  Then her face grew resolute, “That’s why we’ve been searching for Eli, and for a way to cure her.”

“Niccochi…,” Nozomi breathed.

“I’m not going to let A-RISE kill her off,” Nico said, “I’m not giving up until the bitter end.  What about you?”

“I…,” Nozomi whispered, her mind flashing back to Eli’s expression just before her transformation.  It hadn’t been fear or sadness on Eli’s face; it had been resignation.  As if Eli had already given up the will to be herself.  Nozomi looked up at Nico, a new determination in her eyes, “I refuse to give up on Eli.”  She then gave a small chuckle, “Besides, I promised Alisa that I would take her and Elichi to eat parfaits.  I can’t go back on that promise now.”

Nico grinned, “That’s the Nozomi I know.”  Nico promised to come back the next day to brainstorm with Nozomi, then before she knew it Nozomi was all alone.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

She must have dozed off at some point, because the next thing she knew, Nozomi found herself walking through empty space.  Seeing a light, she instinctively walked towards it only to find that she wasn’t alone.  As she drew closer, she suddenly stopped and got in a defensive stance when she realized who it was.

“Easy there,” Saito said, holding his hands up in a gesture of peace.  Though he sounded very different than during all their previous conversations, Nozomi did not trusted him, “I’m not here to pick a fight.  Not that I could do you any harm anyways.”  He sent a punch at her head before she could even think of blocking, but his hand simply passed right through.

“Where are we?” Nozomi asked after finally getting over her initial shock, “And what are you doing here?”

“Limbo,” Saito answered, “Or the valley between life and death.  I’d read about it in the archives, but I didn’t know it really existed.  As to why you’re here, your guess is as good as mine.  As far as I can tell, you aren’t dead.”  Nozomi looked around her, but could see nothing but endless grey.

Saito cleared his throat, causing Nozomi to look at him.  “Since we’re stuck here for the moment, would you humor me and listen to a story?” Saito asked.  When Nozomi didn’t stop him, he began, “Once upon a time, a man went to college and met a beautiful woman.  She was a dancer; he was a scientist.  I’ll skip the boring details, but suffice to say they fell in love and got married.

“However, their marriage was not sanctioned by the woman’s family.  They were appalled at the fact that their daughter had married an ordinary man, a human man.  Because he wanted to impress his in-laws, he began experiments to implant powers into humans, to make them just as powerful as the Other Species.  Stupid, I know.

“When his wife found out, she was furious.  But he couldn’t stop, not when he’d gotten so far already.  It was during their argument that their daughters walked in.  Something…happened; maybe an experiment went wrong.  Because of it, an explosion occurred and when the dust settled, the man saw his wife crouched protectively over their daughters.  She’d died protecting her children, but the only thing he could remember from that moment was her smiling face.

“Blinded by grief, his experiments became more brutal and changed course.  While he still worked on implanting humans with powers, he began researching how to bring his wife back to life.  While going through the archives, he stumbled across an old record of entities called Reapers.  They were creatures who could supposedly control and extract people’s souls with their powers.  But there were no modern records of any Reapers, so he began to experiment on how to create a Reaper.

Saito laughed bitterly, taking a deep breath.  Nozomi kept quiet as she sensed his story was not quite over, “Five years ago, I successfully created the first artificial Reaper, or at least I thought I did.  I thought I’d finally found a way to bring my family back together.  But by then, I was too far gone.  I used my own daughter in my experiments, forcing her to commit unspeakable acts.  And I think you know the rest.”

Nozomi stayed silent as she absorbed all the information.  She knew that even if she thought about it for the rest of her life, there was probably no way she would understand what exactly went through his mind.  Biting her lip, Nozomi said quietly, “I think if I were you, I don’t think I would have cared what my in-laws thought of me.  It’s your family and your life; you shouldn’t be afraid to find your own happiness.”

Saito stared at her, then proceeded to laugh and Nozomi was surprised by the warmth in his voice, “You certainly are an interesting one.”  Then his face softened, “Maybe if I’d met a friend like you sooner, things wouldn’t have turned out like this.”  Nozomi felt a tug on her middle and she felt herself being pulled backwards, Saito getting hazier and hazier, “It seems it’s time for you to head back.”  He appeared to hand something to her, then as Saito turned to go and Nozomi thought she saw the figure of a woman walk up to Saito and link her arms in his.  As Nozomi’s vision slowly faded, she heard the woman whisper one final phrase.

“Please look after Eli for us.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't let anyone else dictate your happiness; find yours and make it your own. And if you ever feel like you're alone, know that you aren't. If nothing else, you have friends here!
> 
> Okay, just wanted to say some encouraging words for once, I'll get off my high horse now. Comments and critiques welcome as always!


	13. A Reaper's Kiss Taste Like Farewell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I posted two chapters in the same day, so if you're like me and jump right to the last chapter of a fanfic thinking that's the newest chapter, make sure you also read Chapter 12! Chapter 13 just felt so closely tied to Chapter 12 that I felt like I needed to post them both.

Several days later, after being discharged from the hospital, Nozomi found herself standing in front of a small brick building.  She looked down again at the address scribbled on the sheet of paper Saito had apparently given her in the limbo world.  She didn’t know why he gave it to her (or how for that matter), but nonetheless felt compelled to at least check it out.

Walking through the front door, Nozomi saw an elderly lady sitting behind the front counter.  Bowing her head to Nozomi, the woman said, “Welcome to the Primordial Archives.  Can I help you with anything?”

“Um,” Nozomi started, at a loss for words.  How was she supposed to ask about the Reapers?

As if reading her mind, the woman simply gave a knowing smile then said, “Check in the last row of books on your left.  You might find what you are looking for.”  Nozomi’s eyes went wide and she almost backed out the door.  But curiosity won over and she did as was suggested.  At first, Nozomi couldn’t find anything useful and wondered if she’d just misheard what the lady had said.  That was, until her eyes fell on an ancient looking book.  Seeing that there was no title (at least, none that she could read), Nozomi opened the book to take a look.

_Since ancient times, Reapers have been feared because of their association with death and suffering…_

Nozomi gasped in surprise; she hadn’t been expecting to actually find anything.  She continued to read about the history of Reapers, from the earliest records all the way to their eventual extinction.  It seemed they had actually been a rather gentle race, preferring to keep to themselves.  Over time, they’d died out due to the fear of their power from the Other Species.  However, it was the text towards the end of the book that truly caught Nozomi’s attention.

_Recently, succubi that have gone berserk have shown signs of similar powers to those of the ancient Reapers, with many mistaking them as the modern day Reaper.  The only way to bring a berserk succubus back to their senses is through the injection of strong feelings or even memories.  However, there has been no record of how to perform such a task…_

The book went on for a few more pages, but there wasn’t anything else that seemed useful.  “Memories, huh?” Nozomi whispered.  Had that been why she’d lost her memories the first time she’d met Eli?  Had Eli’s grandparents taken Nozomi’s memories as the catalyst for the seal?  And the biggest question of all, would Nozomi be able to replicate such a spell?

As she exited the Primordial Archives, lost in thought, Nozomi felt her phone buzzing in her pocket.  Pulling it out, she saw that Nico’s name on the caller ID.

“Thank goodness I finally got through,” Nico breathed on the other end when Nozomi answered the call, “Nozomi, where are you?”

“Huh?  I was…running an errand,” Nozomi replied vaguely, “What’s wrong Niccochi?”

“Hurry up and get to the main square,” Nico commanded, “We just found Eli.”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the skies turned black, Nozomi joined the others at the center of the main square where they found A-RISE fighting against Eli.  Nozomi gave an involuntary gasp.  Eli’s eyes were glowing eerily red, black wings made of shadows flapping to keep her afloat.  Waving her hand, Eli smashed a shadowy fist into Tsubasa, sending the other girl flying towards Nozomi’s group.  Nozomi rushed to the fallen girl’s side.

“You’re late,” Tsubasa teased, though grimaced as she pulled herself upright, “Eli’s a lot tougher than she looks.  Got any brilliant plans up your sleeves?”

“Maybe,” Nozomi answered to the others’ surprise.  She hadn’t mentioned the information she’d discovered from Saito and the archives, though to be fair she hadn’t really had the time, “But I don’t think I can’t do anything unless I can reach her.  At the very least, we need to get her to land.”

“That all you need?” Tsubasa said, standing, “We can probably manage that.  Yazawa, you think you and the others can help?”

Nico turned to Nozomi, “What are you going to do?”

Nozomi shook her head; she didn’t know if it was because she knew Nico would try to stop her or if she would have lost the resolve to do what she instinctively knew she had to do, “There isn’t any time to explain.  Please, Nico.”

Nico hesitated, but Honoka chimed in, “We’ve got your back, Nozomi-sempai!  Kotori, can you stay with Nozomi-sempai?  That way, wherever we get Eli-sempai to land, you can bring Nozomi-sempai there.  Everyone, let’s go save Eli-sempai!”  There was a chorus of agreement as the others raced into battle. 

Tsubasa shook her head ruefully, “You’ve got some good friends.”

“Mm,” Nozomi replied, then Tsubasa was gone as well.  There was little Nozomi could do but watch as her friends continued to fight each other, dodging attacks and debris tossed at them by Eli.  Even so, it seemed Eli was being slowly pushed to the ground.

“Just a little more,” Kotori said, “Are you ready, Nozomi-sempai?”  When Nozomi nodded, Kotori looped her arms under Nozomi, then beat her wings to take off.

But as they drew closer to the battle, Eli suddenly seemed to call up a second wind.  Shrieking, she sent a shockwave outwards, blasting everyone to the ground.  Nozomi and Kotori screamed as they were tossed back, with Nozomi landing on top of Kotori.

Quickly pulling herself off, Nozomi frantically turned to Kotori, “Kotori-chan, are you alright?”  Though there was no response, it seemed Kotori had just been knocked out.  Nozomi’s relief was short lived, however, as she looked up at the growing darkness.  Eli’s eyes stared out blankly at the destruction around her as she began to descend to the ground.

Nozomi pulled herself off the ground, wincing as her ankle protested.  She must have sprained it in the fall.  Ignoring the pain, Nozomi started hobbling towards Eli, who turned as she saw noticed Nozomi’s movements and raised a hand in Nozomi’s direction.  Before Nozomi could react, she felt her back slam into a concrete slab, the wind knocked out of her.  As she fought to stay conscious, Nozomi felt a vice grip close around her neck and found herself face to face with Eli.

“Eli…chi,” Nozomi gasped, the world blurring around her.  Just as she thought it would be the end, the grip around her neck loosened as a force slammed into Eli.

“Oh no you don’t,” Nico growled, blood dripping down her face as she held the column of concrete she’d used to smack Eli, “Wake up Eli!  How long are you going to let that thing control you?”  Eli paused as she eyed Nico, then suddenly began to convulse and scream.  Seeing her chance, Nozomi forced herself to her feet and threw herself at Eli.

“I’m sorry, Elichi,” Nozomi whispered, placing her hands on either side of Eli’s head, “But this is all I can do for you.”  Then she placed her lips over Eli’s.  Memories began to rush out of Nozomi as she felt her strength leaving her body.  As she slowly fell to the ground, the last thing Nozomi saw before the darkness took her was Eli’s beautiful blue eyes.

 

**[Epilogue – If My Heart had Wings]**

_Three years later…_

A young woman wiped her brow as she paused from sweeping the steps of the Kanda Shrine.  It was apparently her grandmother and grandfather’s shrine, and her favorite place to visit when she was younger.  However, she had no memories of the place.

In fact, when she woke up three years ago, she had no memories at all.

Her grandparents had told her that something had happened during the last year of high school.  They never really said what and she hadn’t bothered to ask.  Her parents had been too busy to deal with an amnesiac child, so she’d been sent to live here.  But she didn’t mind; she was slowly getting used to the life here.  It was just that she could almost feel her memories, just out of reach.  And she knew she was forgetting something really important.

“Nozomi.”

It was a name she’d heard her grandparents call her many times.  But it wasn’t until now that the name truly resonated with her.  Her head shot up in surprise to see a person standing in front of her, though a dark cloak obscured the person’s face.  Nozomi felt her heart flutter but she couldn’t for the life of her figure out why.

“Do I…know you?” Nozomi asked the cloaked figure.  When the figure pulled back the hood of her cloak, Nozomi saw blond hair and sparkling blue eyes.  As the figure gently smiled at her, the memories came rushing back to Nozomi.

“My name is Eli Ayase.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that’s it. Thank you for sticking with the story until the end. I had originally planned for more romance (well, and a lot of other things), but since I lack experience in that department it turned out like…this. This story has changed quite a bit from my initial idea, but overall I’m quite satisfied with the outcome and happy that I was able to actually finish my first multi-chapter project. Hope to see you all in future works!


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